An Annotated and Illustrated List of Carabid Beetles (Insecta: 
Coleoptera: Carabidae) from the California Academy of 
Sciences’ 2011 Hearst Philippine Biodiversity Expedition 
David H. Kavanaugh^ Victor G. Smith, and Michael Krasnobrod 
Department of Entomology^ California Academy of Sciences, 55 Music Concourse Drive, 
San Francisco 94118; ^Email: dkavanaugh@calacademy.ojg 
We present a list of carabid species represented in material collected by the interna¬ 
tional team of arthropod specialists in May-June, 2011 as part of the California 
Academy of Sciences’ 2011 Hearst Philippine Expedition. A total of 234 specimens, 
representing 68 different morphologically distinct species (morphospecies), were 
studied and identified to the lowest taxonomic rank possible. Because the fauna of 
the Philippines is so diverse and remains so poorly known, many of these arc identi¬ 
fied only to genus and one only questionably to tribe. Digital images of dorsal habi¬ 
tus and collection data are also provided for each species to encourage study of this 
wonderful fauna. 
Keywords: Coleoptera, Carabidae, Philippine Islands, biodiversity 
The terrestrial component of the 2011 Hearst Philippine Expedition (see Williams, pp. 54-56, 
62-65, this volume for details) included an experienced team of California Academy of Sciences 
(CAS) and Philippine arthropod specialists. Over a period of six weeks in May and June, 2011, this 
team sampled arthropod diversity in three areas in the southern part of Luzon Island (Fig. 1): (1) 
Mt. Makiling and adjacent lowland areas near Los Banos in Laguna Province; (2) the northeast 
base and slope of Mt. Banahaw de Lucban in Quezon Province; and (3) the northwest slope of Mt. 
Isarog in Camarines Sur Province. Collecting methods employed included hand collecting by day 
and at night with the aid of headlamps, attraction to both mercury vapor and ultraviolet lights at 
night, sifting of ground litter with subsequent sorting by hand or mass extraction using mini-Win¬ 
kler traps, as well as pitfall traps, yellow pan traps, and Malaise traps. Although no specialists in 
beetle systematics participated in the expedition, the team collected more than 200 specimens rep¬ 
resenting the beetle family Carabidae using these diverse methods. Because study of this family is 
the principal research focus of the lead author [DHK], specimens from the Expedition were pre¬ 
pared for study and subsequent identification. 
An attempt was made to identify all of the carabid specimens as far as possible, hopehilly to 
the species level, but this proved to be quite difficult because the carabid fauna of the Oriental 
Region, and of the Philippines in particular, remains so poorly known. The last catalog of carabids 
of the Philippines was by Andrewes (1926), in which he recorded only 155 species and “varieties” 
for the entire archipelago, whereas the expedition team recorded slightly less than half of that num¬ 
ber from just part of the southern end of Luzon Island in just six weeks. The carabid faunas of Japan 
to the north and New Guinea to the south are much better known, thanks largely to the extensive 
works by Akinobu Habu and by Philip J. Darlington, Jr. and Martin Baehr for these areas, respec¬ 
tively. However, the entire island region between these extremes has been very poorly sampled. 
Wiesner (1980) reviewed the tiger beetles (Cicindelini) of the Philippines, and a few other work¬ 
ers have dealt with certam genera or species groups represented in the archipelago (e.g., Baehr 
2012 and Darlington 1959); but no comprehensive treatments of the Philippine carabid genera and 
species have been produced. It is likely that the known fauna represents only 10% or less of the 
true carabid fauna of this hyper-diverse archipelago. 
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