Biology:Aegithus
Aegithus is a neotropical genus of pleasing fungus beetles (family Erotylidae) in subfamily Erotylinae.[1][2]
These beetles are large by their family's standards, and have a rounded "hump-backed" shape as adults; overall, they resemble a large plump species of ladybeetle. Their antennae are clubbed at the tips.While many species have the yellowish-and-black coloration often seen in pleasing fungus beetles, some show, more unusually for this subfamily, bright red colors.
Among their subfamily, they seem to be a rather ancient lineage retaining many ancestral traits, such as a general lack of complicated color patterns (zigzag bands or eyespots) and larvae which feed singly on polypore fungi.[3]
Species
Aegithus contains some 75 described species:[2][4][1][5]
- Aegithus abruptus Casey, 1916
- Aegithus andreae Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus armitagei Gorham, 1889
- Aegithus assimilis Crotch, 1876
- Aegithus bartletti Gorham, 1889
- Aegithus bicolor Kirsch, 1865
- Aegithus binarius Casey, 1916
- Aegithus bourcieri Guérin-Méneville, 1855
- Aegithus brunnipennis Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus bulla Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus burmeisteri Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus cardinalis Chevrolat, 1834
- Aegithus chalybeus (Duponchel, 1825)
- Aegithus cinctipennis (Duponchel, 1825)
- Aegithus circumfusus Kuhnt, 1908
- Aegithus clathraticollis Mader, 1942
- Aegithus clavicornis (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Aegithus consularis Guérin-Méneville, 1855
- Aegithus cordatus Crotch, 1876
- Aegithus cretaceus Guérin, 1956
- Aegithus cribrosus Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus cyanipennis Guérin-Méneville, 1841
- Aegithus decoloratus Kuhnt, 1910
- Aegithus dichrous Crotch, 1876
- Aegithus dohrni Mader, 1942
- Aegithus dubius Gorham, 1888
- Aegithus duplicatus Gorham, 1888
- Aegithus ecuadorianus Mader, 1942
- Aegithus flavolineatus Mader, 1943
- Aegithus geminatus Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus globulus Achard, 1926
- Aegithus gorhami Alvarenga, 1977
- Aegithus grammicus Gorham, 1888
- Aegithus hemisphaericus Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus hogei Gorham, 1888
- Aegithus inflatus Crotch, 1876
- Aegithus jansoni Crotch, 1873
- Aegithus lateritius Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus leachi Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus lebasi[verification needed] Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus lineatus Guérin-Méneville, 1844
- Aegithus lineola Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus luridus Kuhnt, 1908
- Aegithus luteus Erichson, 1847
- Aegithus maculicollis (Duponchel, 1825)
- Aegithus melaspis Gorham, 1888
- Aegithus meridionalis Crotch, 1873
- Aegithus mesosternalis Kuhnt, 1908
- Aegithus monochrous Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus multistriatus Mader, 1942
- Aegithus nigrocinctus Erichson, 1847
- Aegithus olivaceipennis Mader, 1942
- Aegithus ornaticollis Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus pallidus Kuhnt, 1908
- Aegithus politissimus Crotch, 1876
- Aegithus politus Gorham, 1888
- Aegithus punctatissimus (Fabricius, 1775) (= A.separandus)
- Aegithus quadrimaculatus Gistel, 1848
- Aegithus quadrinotatus Chevrolat, 1834
- Aegithus rhombifer Casey, 1916
- Aegithus rubriventris Kuhnt, 1908
- Aegithus rufipennis Chevrolat, 1834
- Aegithus sanguinans Dohrn, 1880
- Aegithus satellitius Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus schenklingi Mader, 1942
- Aegithus scurra Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus stillatus Gorham, 1888
- Aegithus striatellus Crotch, 1876
- Aegithus strigicollis Gorham, 1888
- Aegithus suturella Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus torquatus Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus trilineatus Kuhnt, 1908
- Aegithus truncatus Crotch, 1876
- Aegithus uva Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus varicollis Lacordaire, 1842
- Aegithus walkenaeri Lacordaire, 1842
A review of the UPN collection found 7 identifiable species represented among the 41 Aegithus specimens, with records from across the southeastern half of Colombia but none northwest of Boyacá and Valle del Cauca departments. Apart from the common A.clavicornis, none of the species seemed to be particularly wide-ranging. And in addition, 4 specimens (about 10%) from Cundinamarca and Tolima departments in central Colombia could only be assigned to Aegithus, but not to a species known from the region.[6]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Aegithus Fabricus, 1801". https://www.gbif.org/species/4719556.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Genus Aegithus". https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/251108-Aegithus.
- ↑ Robertson, James A.; McHugh, Joseph V. & Whiting, Michael F. (2004): A molecular phylogenetic analysis of the pleasing fungus beetles (Coleoptera: Erotylidae): evolution of colour patterns, gregariousness and mycophagy. Syst.Entomol. 29(2): 173-187. doi:10.1111/j.0307-6970.2004.00242.x PDF fulltext
- ↑ "Aegithus". https://www.biolib.cz/en/taxon/id695387/.
- ↑ Alvarenga, Moacyr (1994): Catálogo dos Erotylidae (Coleoptera) Neotropicais. [Catalogue of Neotropical Erotylidae (Coleoptera). Portuguese with English abstract.] Revista Brasileira de Zoologia 11(1): 1-175. doi:10.1590/S0101-81751994000100001.
- ↑ Torres-Pachón, Mónica; Gasca-Álvarez,; Héctor Jaime; Bustos-Martínez, Miller Felipe; Skelley, Paul E. & García-Sarmiento, Martha J. (2026): Erotylinae (Coleoptera: Erotylidae) de la colección entomológica del Museo de Historia Natural de la Universidad Pedagógica Nacional. ["Erotylinae (Coleoptera: Erotylidae) housed in Natural History Museum Entomological Collection of Universidad Pedagógica Nacional." Spanish with English abstract.] Revista UDCA Actualidad & Divulgación Científica 29(1): e3002. doi:10.31910/rudca.v29.n1.2026.3002
Wikidata ☰ Q9584986 entry
 |  |
