Alesiellagen.n. and a newly discovered relict lineage of Staphylinini (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae)

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the sister group of the poorly known and morphologically isolated Burmese species Quedius lineipennis within the tribe Staphylinini (Staphylinidae: Staphylininae) using morphological characters. Phylogenetic analysis of a broad taxon sample demonstrated that this Asian species is not a member of the genus Quedius but forms the sister taxon to the Neotropical genus Quediomacrus. Both taxa were shown to be members of a hitherto unrecognized lineage with a highly disjunct distribution. The lineage is hypothesized to be Asian in origin, with dispersals to the Americas during the early Eocene climatic maximum via Beringia and to Australia via land connections in the late Miocene. The current distribution of the lineage is considered to be relictual. New phylogenetic hypotheses within ‘Quediina’ and Staphylinini as a whole are proposed and the general tree topology of Staphylinini recovered by recent morphological studies is refined. Phylogenetic relationships within the Quedius complex remain unclear. Alesiella Brunke and Solodovnikov gen.n., is erected for Quedius lineipennis and the Quedius subgenus Quedionuchus is reinstated to genus level with new combinations as follows: Quedionuchus atl (Smetana, 1975), comb.n.; Quedionuchus calli (Smetana, 1976), comb.n.; Quedionuchus cipactli (Smetana, 1976), comb.n.; Quedionuchus coatl (Smetana, 1976), comb.n.; Quedionuchus ehacatl (Smetana, 1976), comb.n.; Quedionuchus ollin (Smetana, 1976), comb.n.; Quedionuchus ozomatli (Smetana, 1975), comb.n.; Quedionuchus reitterianus (Bernhauer, 1944), comb.n.; Quedionuchus samuraicus (Bernhauer and Schubert, 1916), comb.n.; Quedionuchus schultzei (Smetana, 1975), comb.n.; Quedionuchus tecpatl (Smetana, 1976), comb.n.; Quedionuchus xochitl (Smetana, 1976). Quedius lugubris Lokay, 1913 is transferred from the subgenus Quedionuchus to the subgenus Distichalius and placed in synonymy: Quedius punctatellus (Heer, 1839) = Quedius lugubris Lokay, 1913, syn.n. This published work has been registered in ZooBank, http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:9C7D3C90-FCB9-414F-911B-194A1A6602DE.

A spectacular new genus of Staphylinini rove beetle from the tropical Andes and its phylogenetic assessment (Coleoptera : Staphylinidae)

“…Overall, the results of our analyses were congruent with recent phylogenetic work on the tribe Staphylinini Given that Devilleferus has the synapomorphies of Amblyopinina, which were recovered in the analyses of Brunke and Solodovnikov (2013) and in our analyses here, we classify Devilleferus as a member of the subtribe Amblyopinina rather than erect its own new subtribe, even though the new genus is quite characteristic. In addition to the character states recovered as synapomorphies of Amblyopinina inclusive of Devilleferus in our analyses (paramere strongly produced over apex of median lobe and paramere attached to median lobe at base, closely appressed to median lobe along entire length), the new genus also has the pronotum with hypomeron strongly inflexed and aedeagus without peg setae.…”

New Data, Old Story: Molecular Data Illuminate the Tribal Relationships among Rove Beetles of the Subfamily Staphylininae (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae)

“…On a practical level, fragmenting one of the best-established rove beetle subfamilies [7] into four has the potential to cause confusion among practicing entomologists and ecologists. This is particularly the case given that there are still many unsequenced and poorly-studied genera in Staphylinini s. l. [5,[53][54][55]] and yet-undescribed fossils near Diochini and Coomania from Burmese and Baltic ambers, whose revision in the upcoming years could bring further instability to the classification of rove beetles if the new classification scheme [21] of Staphylininae were to be followed.…”

Rove beetles of the genus Quedius (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae) of Russia: a key to species and annotated catalogue

“…The subdivision of the genus Quedius into subgenera is used here according to Schülke and Smetana (2015). It is noteworthy to mention that the genus Quedionuchus recently reinstated to this level (Brunke and Solodovnikov 2013) is not included in this catalogue. Within subgenera, we list species alphabetically.…”