A new genus and species of subterranean diving beetle from Laos (Coleoptera, Dytiscidae, Hydroporinae, Hydroporini)

Abstract

The first stygobiontic diving beetle known from Laos, Laodytes lapiei n. gen., n. sp., is described from a cave located in the Vientiane province. Its morphological characters lead to its placement, among Hydroporinae, in Hydroporini. Inside these, the new species could not be assigned to an existing genus. As a result, a new genus has been defined without it being possible, at the present stage, to assign it to one of the currently recognized subtribes.