Scydmaenus tarsatus
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Fig. 1: Scydmaenus tarsatus |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Scydmaenus tarsatus | ||||||||||||
| ( Müller & Kunze , 1822) |
Scydmaenus tarsatus is a beetle from the subfamily of the ant beetle in the family of the short-winged (Staphylinidae). The beetle, which is common in places, receives little attention because of its small size and its economic insignificance.
Comments on the name and system
The species was described by Marsham as early as 1802 under the name Lytta picea . The description as Scydmaenus tarsatus by Müller & Kunze was not made until 1822.
The species name tarsātus ( Latin ) means distinguished by the limbs . The fore and middle tarsi are strong at the base in the male and weakly expanded in the female.
The generic name Scydmāēnus (from ancient Greek σκύδμαινος skýdmainos, sullen, dark) expresses that the species occur in dark places.
The genus Scydmaenus is represented in Europe with 4 subgenera and twenty species.
Anatomical features
The beetle has a relatively constant body length of 2.0 to 2.1 millimeters. The color also varies little. The head and pronotum are maroon, the elytra a little lighter and the extremities are reddish brown. The body is slightly protruding yellowish hairs.
The head is rounded when viewed from above, the eyes are large, rounded and flat. The antennae deflections are between the eyes at the front edge of the head. They are only about a third of the width of the head apart. The first of the eleven antennae has a special feature by which the genus Scydmaenus can be recognized with certainty. It is thick and has a wedge-shaped recess at the top at the front (can be seen on the right sensor at high resolution in Fig. 1, and also from below in Fig. 4). The second sensor element is pivoted into this recess so that it can only be bent upwards. The last three antennae form a loose club. The temples behind the eyes are a little longer than the diameter of the eyes. The forehead and crown are flat arched together. The jaw probes are noticeably strongly developed. They are four-part. The large third and the small fourth link form a massive club.
The pronotum is about as long as it is wide, unrimmed, and strongly rounded towards the front and sides. The pronotum narrows less towards the base than towards the head. There are four distinct dimples in front of the base.
The elytra are together oval, strongly arched and also rounded on all sides. At the back they are individually flat and rounded and almost completely cover the abdomen. They are indented at the base and a humeral fold is formed on each side of this basal pit. The wings are fully developed.
The legs are relatively short and strong. The legs are slender at the base and thickened like a club towards the end. All tarsi are five-part. The trochanters of the hind legs are elongated and visible from above when the legs are in the appropriate position. The hind hips are widely separated. They are not extended outwards (Fig. 4).
The chitin plates (episterns) lying laterally above the rear breast are separated from the rear breast by a deep groove and are not covered by the wing covers. The abdomen has six visible sections (sternites, Fig. 4).
biology
Beetles and larvae are predatory. The imago can fly to suitable habitats.
Distribution and occurrence
The species is widespread in Europe , North Africa , Western Asia and the Canaries . In Central Europe they can be found in warm biotopes , for example in modern straw, rotted plant residues or in compost.
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 .
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Systematics, synonyms and distribution of Scydmaenus tarsatus in Fauna Europaea
- ↑ Sigmund Schenkling: Explanation of the scientific beetle names (species)
- ↑ Sigmund Schenkling: Explanation of the scientific beetle names (genus)
- ^ Scydmaenus at Fauna Europaea. Retrieved March 17, 2013
- ↑ Cholerus (subgenus) in Fauna Europaea. Retrieved March 17, 2013
- ↑ Eustemmus (subgenus) in Fauna Europaea. Retrieved March 17, 2013
- ↑ Parallomicrus (subgenus) in Fauna Europaea. Retrieved March 17, 2013
- ↑ Scydmaenus (subgenus) in Fauna Europaea. Retrieved March 17, 2013