Nicrophorus interruptus

Nicrophorus interruptus
Nicrophorus interruptus , female with mite on the head
Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta) Order : Beetle (Coleoptera) Family : Carrion beetle (Silphidae) Subfamily : Nicrophorinae Genre : Nicrophorus Type : Nicrophorus interruptus
Scientific name
Nicrophorus interruptus
Stephens , 1830

Nicrophorus interruptus ( Syn .: Necrophorus fossor ) is a beetle fromthe carrion beetle family andthe grave digger genus ( Nicrophorus ). The genus is represented in Europe with thirteen species , in Central Europe with ten species. Two of them are predominantly black, Nicrophorus interruptus belongs to the remaining eight species, which are characterized by two orange-colored transverse bands on the elytra and can only be distinguished from one another on closer inspection.

Comment on the name

The genus Nicrophorus was established by Fabricius in 1775 , whereby a misprint was made. Fabricius himself corrected the name to Necrophorus in 1801 , but today only the Nicrophorus spelling is valid. The generic name is explained from Altgr. νεκρός “nekrós” for “dead”, and φορός “phorós” for “carrying, bearer”, ie dead bearer. The German name gravedigger only partially corresponds to this . In 1775 the genus comprised only a black species and an orange-banded species Nicrophorus vulgaris . The species Nicrophorus interruptus was first described by Stephens in 1830 as Necrophorus interruptus . It was the sixth described of the banded European species. The species name interruptus ( Latin for "interrupted") refers to the fact that the front orange transverse band on the wing covers is not continuous, but is interrupted at the wing cover seam . However, this also occurs with other species. In German-speaking countries, instead of Necrophorus interruptus, the name Necrophorus fossor was used, according to a description by Erichson from 1837. The species name fossor means “the grave” in Latin.

The large number of synonyms proves the variability of the species and the interest shown in the beetle. The list of synonyms of Nicrophorus interruptus includes at least 17 species or variant names:

• Necrophorus interruptus Stephens 1830
• Necrophorus corsicus Laporte de Castelnau , 1832
• Necrophorus fossor Erichson 1837
• Necrophorus funereus Gene 1839
• Necrophorus basalis Gistel 1848
• Necrophorus gallicus Jaquelin du Val 1860
• Necrophorus suturalis Motschulski 1860
• Necrophorus i. var. brunnipes Gradl 1882
• Necrophorus i. var.trimaculatus Gradl 1882
• Necrophorus i. centrimaculatus Reitter 1895
• Necrophorus corsicus var.aportei Meier 1900
• Necrophorus corsicus var.vodozi Meier 1900
• Necrophorus i. trinotatus Reitter 1911
• Necrophorus i. algiricus Pasquet 1916
• Necrophorus i. nigricans Pasquet 1916
• Necrophorus i. pasqueti pic 1917
• Necrophorus i. infuscaticornis Portevin 1924

The type and their synonyms have been assigned to 15 genera or sub-genera in the course of their research history at least: Acanthopsilus , Cyrtoscelis , Eunecrophorus , Necrocharis , Necroleptes , Necrophorindus , Necrophoriscus , Necrophorus , Necropter , Necroxenus , Neonicrophorus , Nesonecrophorus , Nesonecropter , Nicrophorus and Stictonecropter .

Properties of the beetle

Fig. 1: Males from above, below, side and front
	Fig. 3: Pronotum
Fig. 2: Abdominal tergite
	Fig. 4: Sensor
Fig. 5: Anterior tarsus	Fig. 6: Rear rail
Fig. 7: Detail of the underside, right female, thigh ring of the hind leg tinted green, left male, green arrowhead on the hook-shaped outer corner of the trochanter on the hind leg
Fig. 8: Stridulation organ of the female, left section of tergite with the two shrill ridges (white arrows), right section of the underside of the left wing cover in the area of ​​the suture angle, green: position and length of the shrill edge
Fig. 9: Larva of a gravedigger ( N. vespilloides ) according to Schiødte

The size of the beetle varies between twelve and twenty millimeters. With the exception of the two cross bars on the elytra , it is shiny black.

The head is significantly narrower than the pronotum and can be carried forward or lowered to the longitudinal axis of the body. The eleven-limbed antennae consist of a shaft, hostage and a spherical four-limbed club (Fig. 4). Only the base link of this club is black, the three end links are yellow-red. This distinguishes the species from the European banded species Nicrophorus sepulchralis and the black- horned gravedigger ( Nicorphorus vespilloides) , whose antennae are completely black. There are no forehead pits on the head.

The pronotum (Fig. 3) is somewhat wider than it is long and somewhat narrower than the elytra. It is slightly inverted trapezoidal with strongly rounded corners. Behind the front edge, the pronotum is almost bare and thus differs from the banded species Nicrophorus vestigator and Nicrophorus antennatus , which are dense and long yellow haired behind the front edge of the pronotum . The pronotum is strongly punctured near the edges , the puncture in the center of the pronotum is only weakly pronounced.

The black label is large, triangular longer than wide and rounded at the tip.

The elytra are only a little longer than together wide and at the end almost truncated across the body axis. The wing covers leave the last tergites of the abdomen uncovered. These have fine, golden-yellow hairs (Fig. 2), in contrast to the European banded species Nicrophorus sepultor and Nicrophorus investigator , which are bare there. The drawing of the wing covers varies, usually the black band in front of the front orange transverse band is also continued on the orange epipleuras , but does not reach the edge of the wing cover (clearly recognizable in the side view in Fig. 1 and in the taxo picture).

The legs are also hairy golden yellow. The tarsi of all legs are five-limbed. The anterior tarsi are greatly broadened in the males (Fig. 5). The rails of the hind legs (Fig. 6) are straight, not curved outwards like bow-legs as in the common grave digger ( Nicrophorus vespillo ). The thigh ring (trochanter) of the hind legs (tinted green on the right in Fig. 7) ends with a bulge. The resulting outer corners are both aligned in the direction of the thigh in the female. In the male, the outer outer corner is pointed and more or less curved outwards as a tooth (green arrow tip on the left in Fig. 7). This is why Scriba described the beetles, the male of which had the outer corner bent back into a hook shape, following Jacquelin Du Val as a separate species, Necrophorus gallicus .

The sternites of the abdomen are hairy long golden yellow eyelashes on the rear edge (in Fig. 2 these eyelashes are largely rubbed off).

An English illustrated identification aid can be found in Beetle News.

Larvae

The larvae (Fig. 9 shows another species of the genus) are caterpillar-shaped, flattened and widest halfway along the body. They are yellowish-white. The dorsal plates are reduced, the ventral plates are greatly reduced. Only the head, especially the upper jaw, the legs, the urogomphi and the regions around the respiratory openings are sclerotized . The head is wider than it is long and broadest behind the individual eyes (only one on each side). It is flat with the mouthparts pointing forward. The antennae are very small with three cylindrical links, the end link placed asymmetrically. The three breast sections are built the same. The legs are short and five-limbed. The abdomen is ten-limbed, the tenth limb is transformed into a cylindrical anal tube. The ninth segment is shorter than the previous one and carries two bipartite urogomphi and a dorsal plate.

There are three larval stages. The size is 5.25 - 7.75 millimeters in the 1st larval stage, 10.55 to 12.70 millimeters in the 2nd stage and 16.8 to 26.8 millimeters in the third stage. A key for the larvae of the species and a description of the larval stages for Nicrophorus interruptus can be found in various places on the Internet.

biology

The beetles overwinter as a prepupa and appear relatively late in the year. The finds are between April and October, but the animals are by far the most common in Central Europe in July-August. They belong to the crepuscular species of the genus. They feed on carrion and predatory, mainly on fly larvae. They are also regularly found on large carcasses, including exposed human corpses. However, they are rare in comparison with other species in the genus. They appear in the decomposition stage of ammonia putrefaction , in which the exposed parts of the carcass begin to blacken . They are preferred in forests, but also in dry open terrain. They are also occasionally found on dead reptiles and in flowers of the common dragonwort , which give off a carrion odor. Fish and shrimp waste are also accepted as bait . When comparing fish and meat baits, the beetle chose 61% meat bait and 39% fish bait.

Small, relatively fresh carcasses (small mammals, small birds) are flown to for reproduction. A series of tests showed that Nicrophorus interruptus , like three other Nicrophorus species, preferred three-day-old mouse carcasses over completely fresh mouse carcasses, only with Nicrophorus germanicus the preference for older carcasses was not quite as pronounced. How a male and a female in a seasonal marriage track down the carrion, process it, if necessary transport it to a suitable surface, bury it, protect it against fungal growth and predators and use it to feed their young larvae, is shown in the article gravedigger .

The females lure the larvae to feed, chirping softly. The sounds are generated with a stridulation device. This consists of two grooved shrill strips (Fig. 8 left), which sit parallel to and parallel to the wing cover seam at a small distance from this under the cover wings on the abdomen grille, which is largely covered by the wing covers. A narrow ridge, which is located under the wing cover parallel to the rear edge near the seam angle, serves as a short shrill edge (Fig. 8 right, position and dimensions marked in green), which moves over the shrill ridges when the abdomen moves accordingly. This creates the chirping sound.

distribution

The species is present in nearly all of Europe, it is lacking only in some northern regions and on many islands, among others to the Azores , Balearic Islands , Canary Islands , the Channel Islands , Cyprus , the Dodecanese , the North Aegean Islands , Iceland , Ireland , the Cyclades and Madeira . The species has now been detected on Crete and from European Turkey. Outside of Europe, the beetle can be found in the Middle East and North Africa .

literature

• Heinz Joy, Karl Wilhelm Harde, Gustav Adolf Lohse: The beetles of Central Europe . tape 3 . Adephaga 2 - Staphylinoidea 1. Goecke & Evers, Krefeld 1971, ISBN 3-87263-015-6 . P. 194 Necrophorus fossor
• Klaus Koch: The Beetles of Central Europe - Ecology . Volume E1: Carabidae-Micropeplidae. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Munich 1989, ISBN 3-8274-0690-0 . P. 164 Necrophorus
• Edmund Reitter : Fauna Germanica, the beetles of the German Empire, Volume II, KGLutz 'Verlag, Stuttgart 1909 p. 240 Necrophorus interruptus
• Gustav Jäger (Ed.): CG Calwer's Käferbuch. K. Thienemanns, Stuttgart 1876, 3rd edition, p. 94 Necrophorus

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Nicrophorus interruptus from Fauna Europaea. Retrieved December 10, 2019
2. ↑ ^{a b} Heinz Freude, Karl Wilhelm Harde, Gustav Adolf Lohse: Die Käfer Mitteleuropas . tape 3 . Adephaga 2 - Staphylinoidea 1. Goecke & Evers, Krefeld 1971, ISBN 3-87263-015-6 . P. 193, printing error Nicrophorus
3. ^ ^{A b} Johann Christian Fabricius: Systema entomologiae, sistens insectorvm classes, ordines, genera, species, adiectis synonymis, locis, descriptionibvs, observationibvs Flensburg, Leipzig 1775, p. 44 First description Nicrophorus p. 71
4. ↑ Joh. Chr. Fabricius: Systema Eleutheratorum Volume 1. Kiel 1801 spelling Necrophorus in the Google book search
5. ↑ Sigmund Schenkling: Explanation of the scientific beetle names (genus)
6. ↑ ^{a b} James Francis Stephens: Illustration of British Entomologie Mandibulata Vol. 3, London 1830 p. 18 Necrophorus interruptus
7. ^ Genus Nicrophorus from Fauna Europaea , accessed December 10, 2019
8. ↑ ^{a b} Sigmund Schenkling: Explanation of the scientific beetle names (species)
9. ^ Wilhelm Ferdinand Erichson: Die Käfer der Mark Brandenburg 1. Volume, Berlin 1837 p. 224 Necrophorus fossor
10. ^ Heinrich Gradl: From the fauna of the Egerlandes, second part In: Entomologische Nachrichten , VIII. Year Stettin, 1882, issue XIV, p. 323 ff p. 331 ( Necrophorus i. Var. Brunipes and N. i. Var. Trimsculatus ) .
11. ^ Willhelm Meier: Coleopterologische Notes In: Entomologische Nachrichten, 26th year, Berlin 1900, p. 218 ( Necrophorus corsicus var. Llaporte and Necrophorus corsicus var. Vodozi ) .
12. ↑ JCSchiødte: De Metamorphosi Eleutheratorum observationes pars I, 1861-1862 Kjøbenhavn Table VIII, Fig. 11.
13. ^ W. Scriba: About Necrophorus fossor and gallicus in Berlin Entomologische Zeitschrift 8th year, Berlin 1864 p. 377 separation of gallicus from fossor
14. ^ Key Nicrophorus accessed December 10, 2019
15. ↑ Richard Wright: Beginner's Guide Silphidae 1: Nicrophorus. In: Beetle News (= Beetle News. Vol. 1: 1). 2009, ISSN  2040-6177 , p. 6. ( online )
16. ^ Jan Ruzicka: The immature stages of central European species of Nicrophorus (Coleoptera, Silphidae) in Acta Entomologica Bohemoslovenska , 89, pp. 113-135, 1992, ISSN  0001-5601 Description of the larval stages, pp. 130/18
17. ↑ Xambeu : Moeurs et métamorphoses des insectes in Publications de la Société Linéenne de Lyon Vol. 39, Lyon 1892 p. 147 Larva of Creophilus fossor
18. ↑ Erna Pukowski: Ecological investigations on Necrophorus in Zeitschrift für Morphologie und Ökologie der Tiere Vol. 27, N ° 3 1933, digitization by Springer, summary point 16
19. ↑ ^{a b} Jan RŮŽIČKA: Seasonal activity and habitat associations of Silphidae and Leiodidae Acta Soc. Zool. Bohem 58: 67-78, 1994. ISSN  0862-5247 p. 69/70 (p. 3/4) Phenology
20. ↑ ^{a b} Willy Trukens: Doodgravers en aaskevers aan de westrand van Brussels in Phegea year 29, no. 3, Antwerp 2001 p. 97/98
21. ^ Bernhard Schnepf: Investigations on carrion-dwelling beetle fauna Erlangen's approval work at the Institute for Biology at the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen February 2007 p. 78 Table 21 Necrfoss
22. ↑ J. Dekeirsschieter, F. Verheggen, G. Lognay, E. Haubruge: Large carrion beetles (Coleoptera, Silphidae) in Western Europe: a review in Biotechnol. Agron. Soc. Environ. 2011 15 (3), pp. 435-447 pp. 440/6
23. ↑ Henk Braig, Alexandra Perotti: Carcases and mites in Experimental and applied Acarology (2009) 49, 45–84, doi: 10.1007 / s10493-009-9287-6 p. 48 (p. 5)
24. ↑ Capó, Peinado, Mateos, Baselga: Entomofaune cadavérica establecida al aire libre in Medicina Balear Vol. 19, num. 2, 2004 p. 36, in quinta quadrilla
25. ↑ Inês de Lima e Santos Pimentel Fontes: Pictorial characterization of eigth Coleoptera families with Forensic interest Dissertation 2016 Universidad Lisbao, departemento de Biologia animal p. 15 (p. 35) Appearance of the genus Nicrophorus in the 5th wave, without differentiation of the species
26. ↑ Klaus Koch: The beetles of Central Europe - Ecology . Volume E1: Carabidae-Micropeplidae. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, Munich 1989, ISBN 3-8274-0690-0 .
27. ^ Pierre Hastir, Charles Gaspar: Diagnosis d'une famille de fossoyeurs: Les Silphides in Notes faunique de Gembloux N ° 44 (2001) pp. 13-25 pp. 15/3
28. ↑ ^{a b} DERYA ÇİFTÇİ1,3, JAN RŮŽIČKA2, ABDULLAH HASBENLİ1 & ÜLFET ŞAHİN: The large carrion beetles (Coleoptera: Silphidae) of Turkey, a review with a new species record in Zootaxa 4441 (3), pp. 555-591. ISSN  1175-5334 p. 568 (p. 14) on fish and also in European Turkey
29. ↑ EA Eremev: The trophical preferences of carrion beetles (Silphidae) of the north-eastern part of Altai in Eurasian Entomological Journal 16 (4), 2017 p. 355/3
30. ↑ Hana Šípková, Jan RŮŽIČKA: Carrion succession stage preference among necrophagous beetles (Coleoptera: Silphidae) in central Europe in Klapalekiana Volume 45, pp. 213-219. ISSN  1210-6100 p. 215 (p. 3)
31. ↑ Bernhard Klausnitzer: Wonderful world of the beetles . Herder, Freiburg 1981, ISBN 3-451-19630-1 . Sound generation pp. 148/149
32. ↑ Fabian Clemens Schreiber: Carrion beetle (Coleoptera) in the Asterousia Mountains , Master's thesis at the HNS Eberswalde, January 2018 p. 29 Evidence of occurrence in Crete

Web links

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