Discovery of a most remarkable cave-specialized trechine beetle from southern China (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Trechinae)

By

Tian, Mingyi
Huang, Sunbin
Wang, Dianmei

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2017

Original Publication

ZooKeys

Volume

725

Pages

37-47

Subjects

aphaenopsian , ground beetle , Guangxi , troglobite

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.725.21040

 

Abstract

Xuedytes bellus Tian & Huang, gen. et sp. n. is described from a limestone cave in Du’an Karst of Guangxi, a kingdom of cavernicolous trechine beetles in southern China. From a morphological point of view, Xuedytes Tian & Huang, gen. n. seems to be the most extremely cave-adapted trechines in the world. Superficially, it looks much like Giraffaphaenops Deuve, 2002 in general body shape, in particular the structure of the prothorax, but simultaneously it is similar to Dongodytes (s. str.) Deuve, 1993, based on elytral characters, including chaetotaxy. Hence the new genus seems to represent a lineage intermediate between Giraffaphaenops and Dongodytes (s. str.).