1978] Thayer & Newton — Revision of Genus Glypholoma 61 
hind coxae with “retractile” hind femora, each elytron with eleven 
more or less distinct striae, and male genital segment with a small 
“button” internally near the anterior end of sternite 9. Some of the 
species here included in Glypholoma have characteristics, such as 
the filiform antenna of tenuicorne and mesosternal structure of 
rotundulum, that might conventionally be used to justify the 
erection of new genera. Because the south temperate omaliine fauna 
is relatively poorly known, we feel that the use of a conservative 
generic concept is best at present, since this will possibly reduce the 
need for nomenclatural changes at the generic level as the full range 
of variation within the south temperate fauna becomes better 
known. A need for the creation of more genera may become 
apparent eventually; judgment of this is best reserved until at least a 
large proportion of the fauna (rather than the present fragments) is 
known. 
Although not enough information is available to allow formula- 
tion of a complete phylogenetic hypothesis, a few comments can be 
made concerning probable relationships among the species of 
Glypholoma. Each species can be defined by an autapomorphous 
trait, as follows: tenuicorne, elytral striae not impressed between 
punctures; rotundulum, raised pentagonal mesosternal process; 
pecki, elongate antennal segment 11; temporale, bulging temples; 
and pustuliferum, coarsely punctured and rugose prosternum. All 
species but tenuicorne have clavate antennae (instead of filiform, 
which is presumably more primitive within Staphylinids) in com- 
mon, and within this subgroup, pustuliferum and temporale share 
the apparently derived condition of raised pustules on the elytral 
intervals. No synapomorphies have been discovered yet which 
clarify the relationships among these four species any further. The 
availability of more material for detailed study of the three new 
South American species described in the present paper, and the 
discovery of immature stages or biological information for any 
species, might allow the discovery of additional synapomorphies 
and the development of a complete phylogenetic hypothesis. 
The position of Glypholoma within the Omaliinae is somewhat 
ambiguous, largely because relationships within the subfamily as a 
whole are not very well worked out, especially the extra-Holarctic 
representatives of the subfamily. A majority of the characters 
distinguishing Glypholoma from most or all other Omaliinae are 
characters exhibiting plesiomorphic states in Glypholoma. This 
