The first record of Cupedidae (Coleoptera: Archostemata) from Eocene Rovno amber: Cupes groehni Kirejtshuk, 2005 examined using X-ray microtomography
Author
Bukejs, Andris
Author
Alekseev, Vitalii I.
Author
Kairišs, Kristaps
text
Baltic Journal of Coleopterology
2021
2021-12-30
21
2
111
116
journal article
10.5281/zenodo.12520555
1407-8619
12520555
Cupes groehni
Kirejtshuk, 2005
(
Figs. 1–3
)
Fig. 1. Photomicrographs of
Cupes groehni
Kirejtshuk, 2005
, Rovno amber, JDC 8373 [JDC], habitus: A – dorsal view; B – ventral view. Scale bar represents 1.0 mm.
Material examined.
One specimen
with collection number “JDC 8373” [JDC]; adult, sex female. A complete beetle included in a transparent, yellow amber piece with dimensions of
21 mm
×
10 mm
and a maximum thickness of
6 mm
, preserved without supplementary fixation. Syninclusions: a few stellate fagacean trichomes, and numerous small detritus particle.
Strata.
Rovno
amber,
Upper Eocene
.
Locality.
Rovno
[
Rivne
] Region (without locality),
Ukraine
.
Measurements: body length
6.9 mm
; head length
1.2 mm
; pronotum length
0.8 mm
, pronotum maximum width
1.2 mm
; elytra length
4.9 mm
, elytra maximum combined width
1.9 mm
.
Cupes groehni
was described from Eocene Baltic amber based on
five specimens
with certain variability in size and density of scales, shape of posterior tubercles on head, pronotal width, and body length (
Kirejtshuk 2005
). The specimen JDC 8373 is morphologically similar to
C. groehni
(according to
Kirejtshuk 2005
) and is identified as a probable female, showing the sexually dimorphic characters of wider pronotum, more subcircular elytral cells and smaller body size.
A check-list of the described
Coleoptera
from
Rovno
amber has been compiled recently (Bukejs et al. 2020). The importance of studies on the coleopteran assemblage and a special attention to the species common to different Eocene ambers was discussed and pointed out. Taking into account the data from recent papers (
Bukejs & Legalov 2020
;
Sokolov & Perkovsky 2020
;
Kupryjanowicz et al. 2021
; Legalov et al. 2021) and our record of
Cupes groehni
, 62 species of 24 families are reported from
Rovno
amber (as of
21 May 2021
). Nine coleopteran species common
Fig. 2. X-ray micro-CT renderings of
Cupes groehni
Kirejtshuk, 2005
, Rovno amber, JDC 8373 [JDC], habitus: A – dorsal view; B – ventral view; C – left lateral view; D – right lateral view. Scale bar represents 1.0 mm.
The first record of
Cupedidae
(
Coleoptera
:
Archostemata
) from Eocene
Rovno
amber:
Cupes groehni
...
Fig. 3. X-ray micro-CT renderings of
Cupes groehni
Kirejtshuk, 2005
, Rovno amber, JDC 8373 [JDC]: A – pronotum and head, dorsal view; B – details of forebody, ventral view. Not to scale.
to Baltic and
Rovno
ambers, including the current finding, are known. The newly reported specimen represents the first documented finding of the archostematan family
Cupedidae
in
Rovno
amber, as well a small argument confirming the evident space-time closeness of Baltic and
Rovno
amber.