Biology:Aenictoteratini

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Short description: Tribe of beetles

Aenictoteratini
Scientific classification e
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Staphylinidae
Subfamily: Aleocharinae
Tribe: Aenictoteratini
Kistner, 1993
Genera
  • Aenictobia Seevers, 1953
  • Kistner, 1993 Wheeler, 1932
  • Kistner, 1997 Trichotobia
  • Dentaphila Kistner, 1997
  • Aenictolixa Kistner, 1997
  • Ashe, 2003 Giraffaenictus
  • Aenictocupidus Kistner, 2009
  • Maruyama, 2008 Rosciszewskia
  • Aenictoteras Kistner, 1993
  • Weiria Tobiisima
[1]
Synonyms

Aenictobiini

Aenictoteratini is a myrmecophilous tribe of rove beetles in the subfamily Aleocharinae which contains 10 genera, 7 of which are monotypic.[1] In total, there are 17 species currently listed as Aenictoteratini.[1]

Distribution

Most Aenictoteratini genera are found in East Asia, specifically China, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, while Weiria australis (Ashe, 2003) is the only species known from Australia.[2] All species are found inside of nests of the ant genus Aenictus.[3]

Description

Members of this tribe are highly adapted to life among ants, with body shapes resembling those of their hosts.[3]

Taxonomy

Many genera placed in Aenictoteratini when the tribe was created in 1993 have subsequently been moved to the Myrmedoniina, a subtribe of Lomechusini, after phylogenetic analyses revealed that the group was not monophyletic.[3][2][4] Many of the characteristics first used to define the tribe, such as an antlike "pseudo-gaster" narrowed abdomen, can be found in other lineages of myrmecophilous Aleocharinae that resemble ants, making this a case of convergent evolution.[3][2][4]

References

Wikidata ☰ {{{from}}} entry