PROCEEDINGS OF THE UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



issued R^?^viL QfM]} h ihe 



SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 



U. S. NATIONAL MUSEUM 



Vol.86 Washington: 1938 No. 3041 



REVISION OF THE NORTH AMERICAN BEETLES OF THE 

 STAPHYLINID SUBFAMILY TACHYPORINAE— PART 2: 

 GENUS COPROPORUS KRAATZ ^ 



By Richard E. Blackwelder 



About the year 1858 both Kraatz and Motschoulsky, working in- 

 dependently, described and named a genus of Tachyporinae corre- 

 sponding approximately to Erichson's Family I of Tachinus. To this 

 genus Kraatz gave the name of Coproporik, and Motschoulsky that 

 of Erchom/as. The identity of the two genera was soon recognized, 

 but uncertainty as to the dates of publication, and therefore to the 

 priority, resulted in opposing views by subsequent writers as to the 

 proper name for the genus. LeConte, Fauvel, Sharp (1876), Eichel- 

 baum, Bernhauer and Schubert, and Cameron have used Co'proporus, 

 whereas Horn, Sharp (1883), Fowler, Fall, and Leng have used 

 Erchomus. 



There have undoubtedly been previous investigations into this 

 problem, but I believe no one has heretofore published the facts upon 

 which the decision is based. The information outlined below was 

 kindly supplied to me by A. Mequignon, member of the International 

 Commission on Entomological Nomenclature. 



Coproporus Kraatz was published in the Naturgeschichte der 

 Insecten Deutschlands, vol. 2, Staphylinii, p. 399, which was issued 

 definitely in the year 1857, though bearing the date 1858 on the title 

 page. Erchomus Motschoulsky was published in the Bulletin de la 

 Societe Imperiale des Naturalistes de Moscou, vol. 31, no. 3, p. 218, 

 which was issued in 1858, probably in February. 



* Part 1 : Genus TachVporus Giavenhorst was published in Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 84, 

 pp. 39-54, Nov. 17, 1936. 



83363—38 1 



