INSECTA MUNDI, Vol. 15, No.3, September, 2001 185 New records and synonyms in the Colydiinae and Pycnomerini (Coleoptera: Zopheridae) Michael A. Ivie Department of Entomology Montana State University Bozeman, MT 59717, USA [email protected] Stanislaw Adam Slipinski CSIRO Division of Entomology GPO Box 1700 CanberraACT 2601 AUSTRALIA [email protected] Piotr Wegrzynowicz Muzeum i Instytut Zoologii, Polska Akademia Nauk ul. Wilcza 64,00-679 Warszawa POLAND [email protected] Abstract. New synonyms are proposed for: Pethelispa arizonica Dajoz 1992 = Pycnomerus arizonicus Stephan 1989 NEWSYNONYMY; Microprius cubanus Slipinski 1985 =Eudesmula california Dajoz 1992 =Microprius rufulus (Motschulsky 1863) NEWSYNONYMIES; andAuloniumchilense Dajoz 1980=Auloniumparallelopedium (Say 1826) NEWSYNONYMY. Colobicus parilis Pascoeis recordedfrom Louisiana, a new distributionalrecord for the New World. Introduction [NMPC]; Roger Dajoz personal collection, Brunoy [RDPC]; Bohart Museum, University of California, While preparing the Colydiidae (=Colydiinae of Davis [UCDC]; Zoological Museum of the Moscow Slipinski and Lawrence 1999) chapterfor Volume II StateUniversity (ZMUM). of American Beetles (Arnett et al. 2002), new North Part of this paper reflects new findings, honest American generic records, synonyms, and various mistakes, and the normal problems that surface in other items of nomenclatorial and distributional the course of ongoing taxonomic work. However, house-keeping have been discovered. Since new the other portion deserves some comment. Few nomenclatural acts willnotappearinthatwork, this insect taxonomists have so abused the world's sys­ paper is aimed at making these changes known. A tematists that they have been called to task in the few extralimital actions required for the family will scientific literature. The comments of Charles W. also be addressed here. Leng (1911) and Hans Roeschke (1907) about Tho­ Material examined or cited is deposited in the mas Casey's rampant creation of synonyms are following collections: Natural History Museum, examples, asis Carrington's (1874) obituaryofFran­ London [BMNH]; Edward G. Riley personal collec­ cis Walker that lamented the lateness of his death. tion, College Station, Texas [EGRC]; Florida State In recent decades only Mohammad Abdullah has Collection of Arthropods [FSCA]; Hungarian Natu­ rivaled the infamous ecologist/taxonomist Roger ral History Musuem [HNHB]; Louisiana State Uni­ Dajoz of the Museum National d'Histoire Naturel­ versity, Baton Rouge [LSUC]; Museum National le's Laboratoire d'Ecologie, in Brunoy, France, in d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris [MNHN]; Montana Ento­ this regard. Not to be confused with systematists in mology Collection, Montana State University, Boze­ the taxonomic laboratories of that same museum's man [MTEC]; Narodni Muzeum v Prahe, Prague Paris facility, Dajoz' many errors and cavalier ap- 186 Volume 15, No.3, September, 2001, INSECTA MUNDI proach to such trivial factors as generic or even he included a purported key to North American familial placement, typelocalities, characterconsis­ Colydium, but it included only 3 of the 5 described tency, andthecourtesyoflabelingoftypeshavebeen species (one with an incorrect name), and one that highlightedinseveralpapersoverthelast 2 decades, does not occur in the region. including: Iablokoff-Khnzorian (1979), Nikitskyand All ofthiswas done withoutcitinga singlepaper! Belov (1979), and Ivie and Slipinski (1989, 1990). Could anyone really think that there are 3 North After Slipinski's (1985a) pointed rebuke, one would American beetles to be described without a single think he would get the point. paper appropriate for citation? Surely the editors However, injust a few years, he continued with and reviewers (if there were any) share some re­ a paper on North American colydiids (Dajoz 1992), sponsibility for allowing such a paper to go to press? where he sank to new lows. First, without comment It is hoped that the administrators of the Museum he described a species in a genus that was synony­ National d'Histoire Naturelle and/or the editors of mized 130 years earlier, a synonymy confirmed and the Bulletin Mensuel de la Societe Linneenne de detailed by recent workers (Slipinski 1984, Ivie and Lyon will exercise some restraint on his further Slipinski 1989) and so listed in the latest catalog of ability to diminish their reputations with such un­ the family (Ivie and Slipinski 1990). This species is professional drivel. obviously a conspecific with a species described in a major comprehensive publication covering the en­ Synonymies tire NorthAmericanfauna ofthis family threeyears earlier (Stephan 1989), and his name created an Pycnomerus arizonicus Stephan obligatory, but secondary homonym in the process, becausewhenPenthelispaarizonica Dajoz 1992was Pycnomerus arizonicus Stephan 1989: 59, Arizona, placed in the senior generic synonym Pycnomerus, holotype FSCA. it is identical to P. arizonicus Stephan 1989. Recom­ Pethelispa arizonica Dajoz 1992: 60, Arizona, holo­ mendation I.5.(a) of the ICZN (1985) in force at the type RDPC. NEW SYNONYMY time: "A zoologist should not publish a new species­ group name identical with one already in use in a This synonymy is confirmed by Dajoz's illustra­ closely related or associated genus-group taxon..," tions and description, as well as by the type locality holds no sway over Roger Dajozl Luckily, the types and reported biology. of these 2 homonyms are conspecific, so the hom­ onym is also a synonym. Microprius rufulus (Motschulsky) Next, he renamed Mircroprius rufulus (Mots­ chulsky), the most common and widespread species Bitoma rufulus Motschulsky 1863: 502, Sri Lanka, of the genus, and indeed, a species he had already holotype in ZMUM. dealt with repeatedly, albeit under different names Microprius rufulus (Motschulsky), Schuh and Mis­ (Dajoz 1977, 1980, 1992). Inspite ofthe fact thatthe fud 2001: 261. type of its multiple African synonyms are in easy Bitoma linearis Wollaston 1867: 64, Sao Tiago Is., access to Dajoz at the Paris Museum, he placed his Cape Verde Islands, holotype repository un­ latest synonym in a totally unrelated genus (Eudes­ known. ma LeConte) that bears no resemblance, let alone Microprius linearis, Dajoz 1977: 63. relationship, to this species, using a known unjusti­ Synchitodes rufa Reitter 1882: 131. Egypt, 4 syn­ fied replacementname- Eudesmula Cockerell (see types in MNHN 2 in HNHB. Synonymized by Ivie and Slipinski 1990). To date, he has recognized Schuh andMisfud 2001. this common species as 3 different species, in 3 Bitoma rufa, Dajoz 1977: 62. separate genera as Microprius linearis (Wollaston), Microprius confusus Grouvelle 1892: 296. Tangany­ Bitoma rufa (Reitter), and Eudesmula california ika Terr., MNHN. Synonymized by Pope in Dajoz (Dajoz 1977, 1980, 1992) without any indica­ Geisthardt 1986: 74. tion that he knows they are all the same species! Microprius cubanus Slipinski1985b: 81. NEWSYN­ Lastly, he renamed Colydium glabriculum ONYMY, Cuba, holotype NMPC. Stephanas Colydium chiracahuaeDajoz, also previ­ Eudesmulacalifornia Dajoz 1992: 60 NEWSYNON­ ously describedby Stephan(1989) inhis reviewofthe YMY, California, holotype RDPC. NorthAmericanfauna, butthis timehecreatedonly [see Slipinski 1986 and Schuh and Misfud 2001 for a simplesynonym (Wegrzynowicz 1999). Inaddition, further synonymy] INSECTA MUNDI, Vol. 15, No.3, September, 2001 187 NorthAmericanmaterialexamined: California: disease Diplodia (Coelomycetes) to sweet potatoes, Riverside Co.: 6, CathedralCity, various datesJune­ yams, and citrus (Hinton 1945). Its known distribu­ August 1940, L. W. Issak [MTEC, UCDC]. 1, Indio tion includes China, SoutheastAsia, Indonesia, the Hills, 31 August 1981, R. S. Miller [MTEC]. Philippines, Samoa, Hawaii, Australia, Mauritius Several series of this species have been exam­ and now Louisiana. This genus is not included in ined from desert areas of southern California, indi­ Stephan's (1989) key to North American genera. cating this species was introduced and established there for atleast 60 years. As currently understood, Acknowledgments this species becomes one of the most widely distrib­ uted Colydiinae, ranging from India to Syria, Leba­ Nicole Berti,JeanMenier, MartinBrendell,Josef non, Palestine and Egypt across North Africa and Jelinek, Edward Riley, and Steve Heydon, assisted south to Madagascar, Natal, and the Transvaaland with loans of material used in this work. Richard west to the Cape Verde Islands. In the New World Miller, RichardHurley, and GregJohnsonreviewed from Cuba, Grand Cayman, and California. It has the manuscript. Ourcollaborationwas supportedby been intercepted in logs in Germany and Malta, its our respective institutions. This is contribution J­ expected mode of transport to many of its current 001-19 oftheMontanaAgricultural ExperimentSta­ locales (Schuh and Misfud 2001). Given its proven tion ability to survive transport, it can be expected to spread more widely. This genus is not included in Literature cited Stephan's (1989) key to North American genera. Arnett, R. H., Jr., M. C. Thomas, P. E. Skelley, Auloniumparallelopedium (Say) andJ. H. Frank(eds.). 2002. AmericanBeetles, Volume II. CRC Press, Boca Raton, 880 pp. Colydiumparallelopedium Say 1826: 263. Carrington,J. T.1874. FrancisWalker. Entomolo­ Aulonium chilense Dajoz 1980: 335, figs. 5A, B, and gist'sMonthlyMagazine 11: 140-141. C. NEW SYNONYMY, Chile (mislabeled or Dajoz, R. 1977. Coleopteres: Colydiidae et Anom­ introduced?). Holotype: "ex coll,