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Sergey Kazantsev
A REVIEW OF ANCISTRONYCHA MAERKEL WITH THE DESCRIPTION OF
ATALANTYCHA, A NEW NEARCTIC GENUS (COLEOPTERA: CANTHARIDAE)
The Coleopterists Bulletin, 59(2):204-210. 2005.
Abstract
The genus Ancistronycha Maerkel is reviewed.
Atalantycha, new genus, is described.
Ancistronycha rufidens Marseul is transferred to Cantharomorphus Fiori
as Cantharomorphus rufidens (Marseul), new combination.
Ancistronycha bilineata (Say), A. dentigera (Leconte) and
A. neglecta (Fall) are transferred to Atalantycha as Atalantycha
bilineata (Say), new combination,
Atalantycha dentigera (Leconte), new combination, and Atalantycha
neglecta (Fall), new combination.
Ancistronycha taygetana Pic, new synonym, is synonymized with Ancistronycha
occipitalis (Rosenhauer).
Keys to the species of Ancistronycha and Atalantycha are provided.
Ancistronycha Maerkel is a relatively small genus of soldier-beetles
that previously
included seven species from Europe (with one species extending into the
Caucasus)
and three species from North America (Delkeskamp 1977).
Study of this group, with
its apparently remarkable distribution pattern, has revealed that
one of its species,
A. erichsonii, occurs as far south as southern Turkey and that all of its
Nearctic
representatives need to be excluded from Ancistronycha and placed in a
new genus.
One of the Mediterranean species, A. rufidens Marseul, also appeared to
have little in
common with Ancistronycha proper, except in having simple claws in the
male and
metallic blue elytra and is tentatively transferred to Cantharomorphus Fiori,
as
Cantharomorphus rufidens (Marseul), new combination.