Discovery of the genus Ancystrocerus Raffray in China, with description of a new species (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Pselaphinae)
Author
Yin, Zi-Wei
Author
Wang, Dan
Author
Li, Li-Zhen
text
Zootaxa
2015
3949
4
584
588
journal article
10.11646/zootaxa.3949.4.8
e2985b44-fbe4-4db2-a9b0-fabfb7e5c1a8
1175-5326
244142
4192ABBB-4CA2-45C0-A699-16EFBA413832
Ancystrocerus
Raffray, 1893
Ancystrocerus
Raffray, 1893
: 500
.
Type
species:
Ancystrocerus sumatrensis
Raffray
(monotypy)
Relationship.
Ancystrocerus
is here placed near the Australo-Oriental genus
Saltisedes
Kubota
by sharing the following characters: 1) simple maxillary palpi lacking lateral spines or projections, 2) strongly convex pronotal disc often with a short, conical spine in both sexes, 3) weakly seclerotized and paired male sternite IX, and 4) similar form of the aedeagus. These two genera can be best separated by the maxillary palpi having the apical three palpomeres elongate and with pedunculate bases, the lack of long, modified spines on the first tarsomeres in the male, and presence of male features on the apical antennomeres in
Ancystrocerus
. Members of
Saltisedes
have maxillary palpi with short third palpomeres, the fourth palpomeres with a truncate base, first tarsomeres with a pair of long spines in the male, and male features at base of profemora rather than on antennae. The other Oriental tmesiphorine genus
Pseudophanias
Raffray
also has simple maxillary palpi, but all segments are distinctly short and small, with triangular third palpomeres, and conical fourth palpomeres.
Biology.
Little has been stated about the biology of
Ancystrocerus
species in published references.
Ancystrocerus pallidus
and
A
.
chinensis
sp. n.
, were collected in association with decomposing logs, and
A
.
punctatus
,
A
.
rugicollis
, and
A
.
longicornis
were found from sifted litter samples (
Raffray 1895
). Three of eight undescribed Malaysian species, possibly attributed to
Ancystrocerus
, were collected by flight intercept traps (
Nomura & Idris 2005
), and one female specimen from
Thailand
was collected by Tullgren funnels (
Nomura
et al.
2010
).
Distribution.
Ten species (including the new species described here) are known from southern
India
, southern
China
, Peninsular
Malaysia
, and Sumatra; and we have seen undescribed species from
Sri Lanka
and
Thailand
in museum collections.