Dlium

NEWS - Researchers revisited the genus by describing a new species from Brazil, Eduard Handschin's springtail ( Mastigoceras handschini Rodrigues, Souza & Bellini, sp. nov.), a century after the original description of Mastigoceras camponoti Handschin 1924 based on morphological descriptions combined with the use of DNA barcoding. Mastigoceras Handschin 1924 is a monotypic genus of Orchesellidae that has only been recorded in Brazil. The systematic position of Mastigoceras has been debated and has been considered as a transitional form between Entomobryinae, Paronellinae and Orchesellidae. Other opinions suggest part of Entomobryidae, tribe Mastigocerini (with no clear position within Orchesellidae) to as a group Heteromurinae, possibly as a sister group to Heteromurini. Now researchers revisit Mastigoceras with an updated diagnosis for the genus and notes on Mastigocerini morphology, structural homology, and systematics. Complete mitochondrial Cytochrome Oxidase I (COI) sequ...

NEWS - Branching fan maesa ( Maesa flabellifera D.Wei, G.Hao & Utteridge, sp. nov.) from southeastern Yunnan, China, belongs to the informal long corolla-tube species group, morphologically similar to M. permollis and M. kurzii , but lacks hairs, membranous leaves and long panicles with 7-16 branches. Maesa Forssk. (Primulaceae) includes about 185 species, mostly distributed in the Old World tropics from southern Africa to the Pacific islands. Currently, about 35 species and two varieties (with 13 endemics) have been recorded from China and are mostly distributed in southwest China, especially in Yunnan Province. In February 2021, during a field survey by researchers and colleagues in Pingbian, Honghe Prefecture, Yunnan, an unknown Maesa in bloom was collected. In March 2023 it was again found in Yuanyang and Lüchun. This plant is common in mixed broadleaf evergreen forests at elevations of 1500-2200 m. Flowers January-March and bears fruit April-December. M. flabellifera is a l...

NEWS - Serrated mite ( Myrmozercon serratus sp. nov. Kazemi, Klompen, Pérez-Lachaud & Lachaud) and spatulate mite ( Myrmozercon spatulatus sp. nov. Kazemi, Klompen, Pérez-Lachaud & Lachaud) are reported based on adult and deutonymph specimens collected with ants in Mexico as the first records of this genus from the Neotropical faunal region. Myrmozercon Berlese 1902 is one of the most morphologically diverse genera, including 28 extant species and one extinct species. Almost all species have been collected with ants. Now researchers describe two new species associated with two sympatric formicine ant species of the genus Camponotus Mayr in Quintana Roo, southern Mexico. M. serratus has a dorsal shield with 30–34 pairs of slightly thickened and apically blunt setae, opisthonotal setae mostly with small denticles in the distal 1/3; a wide sclerotized band of marginal striations flanking the shield dorsolaterally in female, not fused, or narrowly fused medially; band bearing 6–...

NEWS - Researchers report a little-known rodent species Typhlomys Milne-Edwards 1877 from Son La, Vietnam, with the first morphological and genetic characterization and description of a new species, southern blind tree mouse ( Typhlomys taxuansis sp. nov). Platacanthomyidae is represented by only two genera with 6-7 species and has been considered a mysterious family due to its morphology resembling dormice (Gliridae), the anatomical structure of bullae and dentary more similar to muroids (Miller & Gidley 1918, Musser & Carleton 2005) and the molar occlusal pattern characteristic of Crecitidae (Fejfar & Kalthoff 1999) and Nesomyinae (Ellerman 1940, Ellerman 1949). The English common name “pigmy dormice” and the Russian common name “Chinese dormouse hamsters” are misleading in this case. Recent taxonomic summaries of mammals have the common name “tree mice”, but consider the most specific features to be “blind tree mice” to distinguish them from other arboreal rodents. Typh...

NEWS - Dazzling rove beetle ( Apecholinus speciosus Sun & Liu, sp. nov.) from Mangshan, Hunan, China, has similarity to Apecholinus imitator Smetana & Hu 2019 and phylogenetic analysis based on mitochondrial genome showed the two species form a sister clade to Ocypus and Dinothenarus, all belonging to the Ocypus lineage. Apecholinus Bernhauer 1933 was established with Apecholinus kaiseri Bernhauer 1933 as the type species established by monotypy. So far, 7 species have been described and are found only in East Asia. Of these, 6 species are in mainland China and Taiwan, only one species is native to North Korea. They are A. aglaosemanticus (He & Zhou, 2017), A. canifer Smetana & Hu 2019, A. fraternus (Fairmaire, 1891), A. imitator Smetana & Hu 2019, A. kaiseri Bernhauer 1933, A. liui (He & Zhou, 2017) and A. septentrionalis Senda & Han 2023. Apecholinus is recognized by mandibles each having one simple tooth on the medial edge, no subdental mandibul...

NEWS - Researchers report 7 new species in the subgenus Orientostichus Sciaky & Allegro 2013 from Southeast China, all of which belong to the Pterostichus prattii species group Bates 1890: Pterostichus (Orientostichus) sinuosus , P. (O.) shan , P. (O.) luoxiaoensis , P. (O.) separatus , P. (O.) skanda , P. (O.) fujianensis , P. (O.) deliquus and P. (O.) matalini Fedorenko 2023 were first recorded in China. Orientostichus contains a number of large Pterostichus species Bonelli 1810 that are common not only in evergreen broadleaf forests and high mountain cloud forests. A total of 25 species have been described in this subgenus, which are distributed throughout southern China and Southeast Asia. These species are classified into 4 species groups: P. pulcher Sciaky & Allegro 2013, P. curtatus Fairmaire 1886, P. lesticoides (Straneo, 1939) and P. prattii Bates 1890. The first two groups are known only from the high mountains of southwestern China, while the other two are dis...

NEWS - Wen-I Chou click-beetle ( Homotechnes choui sp. nov.), a new species from Guangxi, China, with antennae extend beyond hind angle of pronotum by about one and a half apical antennomeres. Pronotum with large central black spot, sides subparallel. Legs almost black in dorsal view. Homotechnes Candèze 1882 (Elateridae: Hypnoidinae) consists of 14 species distributed in China (7 species), Japan (5 species), India (1 species) and Vietnam (1 species), but the actual phylogenetic position within Elateridae still requires further investigation. H. choui can be distinguished from Homotechnes mertliki Platia 2017 and Homotechnes opacicollis Platia 2017 by the pronotum with a narrow central elongate depression, while the latter two species have an elongate central impunctate carina. The new species differs from other Chinese species by the black legs and subparallel pronotum sides in males. It can be distinguished from Homotechnes kucerai Platia, Mertlik & Dušánek 2023 and Homotech...

NEWS - Researchers discovered two new species: Nanling anomala ( Anomala nanlingensis Zhao, Zorn & Liu, sp. nov.) and Yu-Chen Zheng anomala ( Anomala zhengyucheni Zhao, Zorn & Liu, sp. nov.) while investigating the taxonomy of Anomala fuscosignata -complex from southern China and northern Vietnam through direct morphological comparison and molecular phylogenetic analysis. Anomala Samouelle 1819 has a significant increase in the number of species in southern China, Indochina and Wallacea. Anomala spiloptera group is characterized by parameres usually very elongated and connected by a wide wrinkled membrane dorso-basally, the ventral plate is usually equipped with a long process resembling a narrow blade. Now researchers have found such a membrane also in the Vietnamese species A. fuscosignata Ohaus 1905 and A. luminosa Benderitter 1929. However, it differs from all members of the A. spiloptera group by having rather simple spots on the pronotum and elytra (vs. solid transv...

NEWS - Two new species of beetles, Luokeng Town ambrosia beetle ( Xylosandrus luokengensis Lin & Gao sp. nov.) and Nanling ambrosia beetle ( Xylosandrus nanlingensis Lin & Gao sp. nov.) from Guangdong, South China and Xylosandrus trunculus Park & Smith 2020 are reported from China for the first time. Xylosandrus Reitter 1913 (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae: Xyleborini) is a large genus of ambrosia beetles with a wide distribution mainly in tropical and temperate regions. The genus was established together with Xyleborus morigerus Blandford as monotypic. Many species have been described or transferred to Xylosandrus. Twenty-one species have been recorded in mainland China, including two new species. X. luokengensis can be distinguished from the Chinese Xylosandrus by the combination of its moderate size (3.0–3.1mm); by the declivital face steep, abruptly separated from disc, elytra obliquely truncate; by the posterolateral margin forming a circumdeclivital costa,...

NEWS - Researchers from Yangtze University in Hubei and Qingdao Hotincomon Agricultural Materials Marketing Co., Ltd in Shandong reported Zhilin Chen longhorned beetle ( Drumontiana zhilini sp. nov.) from Huaping National Nature Reserve in Guangxi, China, as a new species closely related to D. amplipennis (Gressitt, 1939) and similar to D. costata Komiya & Niisato 2007. Drumontiana Danilevsky 2001 (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Prioninae) was established based on the Southeastern Palaearctic and Oriental species Casiphia lacordairei Semenov, 1927 from Xizang, Yunnan and Northern Vietnam. Komiya & Niisato (2007) described four new species from China and Indochina, and transferred Psephactus amplipennis Gressitt 1939 to the genus. Recently Ying-Qi Wang and colleagues, during an investigation of insect diversity in the Nanling Mountains, discovered an unknown species of Drumontiana. D. zhilini was described from Guangxi, China. Habitus and terminalia of males of the new species ...

NEWS - Seven new species were described: Zaixiong Chen hygropetric beetle ( Satonius cheni sp. nov.), black belly hygropetric beetle ( Satonius nigriventralis sp. nov.), Hong Pang hygropetric beetle ( Satonius panghongae sp. nov.), Quzhou hygropetric beetle ( Satonius quzhouensis sp. nov.), Xinhui hygropetric beetle ( Satonius xinhuiensis sp. nov.), Youxiang Zhang hygropetric beetle ( Satonius zhangi sp. nov.) and Zhenhua Liu hygropetric beetle ( Satonius zhenhuai sp. nov.). Torridincolidae is a family of water beetles in the suborder Myxophaga comprising 54 species in 7 genera. Torridincolids are known from Central and Southern Africa, Madagascar, Central and Northern South America, Japan and China. They mostly live in seasonal mountain streams, hygropetricular habitats or spray zones of waterfalls. Satonius Endrödy-Younga 1997 was established based on a Japanese species described as Delevea kurosawai Satô 1982. Satonius is similar to Delevea Reichardt 1976 from South Africa, ...

NEWS - Nine new long-legs spiders species were described from karst caves in Guizhou, southwest China: Belisana bijie , Belisana liupanshui , Belisana majiang , Belisana nayong , Belisana qixingguan , Belisana xiuwen , Belisana yongcong , Belisana zhouxi and Belisana zunyi , while Belisana zhangi was reported for the first time from the region. Long-legs spiders Belisana Thorell 1898 is the second largest genus in the Pholcidae C.L. Koch 1850, containing 160 species. They inhabit a variety of microhabitats such as under rocks, in caves, under leaves, among leaf litter and among foliage in the canopy. These spiders are distributed in southern China, Indo-Malaya and Australasia. Currently, 46% of the species (74 species) are documented from southern China, with Yunnan having the highest concentration of species with 42% (31 species). Guangxi and Hainan, which have the second and third highest species diversity of Belisana, recorded only 11 and 10 species, respectively. Many surveys tar...

NEWS - Researchers describe hook-shaped end leaf beetle ( Arthrotus hamatus sp. nov.) and black spot leaf beetle ( Arthrotus oculatus sp. nov.), along with 17 other species and one newly recorded species in China: Arthrotus kalimponganus Kimoto 2004, all from Nanling, China. Arthrotus Motschulsky 1857 with Arthrotus niger 1857 from Japan as the type species encompasses 48 species distributed in the Eastern and Palearctic regions. Now researchers describe specimens collected from Nanling, including 2 new species and one new record, bringing the total to 50 species worldwide, with 31 species in China. The genus is characterized by body oblong. Vertex with median furrow, postantennal tubercle well developed, with a longitudinal furrow between postantennal tubercles; a ridge-like convex located between antennae; antennae longer than half the length of the body; in both sexes, antennomere II shortest, antennomere III second shortest, antennomere IV longer than the sum of antennomeres II...