Anthicidae

Notoxus litigiosus, from Dmitry Telnov.

Belongs within: Tenebrionoidea.
Contains: Formicomini, Anthicus.

The Anthicidae are a family of elongate, usually hairy beetles which have the back of the head constricted into a distinct 'neck'. Most species are found in decaying vegetation or leaf litter, and are believed to be scavengers. A number of species of the subfamily Anthicinae are found in association with ants which they resemble in superficial appearance. Members of the subfamily Notoxinae have a tuberculate anterior projection of the pronotum overhanging the head. The Eurygeniinae are commonly found on flowers and have scoop-like mandibles adapted for feeding on pollen (Bouchard 2014). The Lemodinae are an Australasian group with larvae found under bark and in leaf litter; adults are often strikingly coloured (Lawrence & Britton 1991).

Characters (from Lawrence & Britton 1991): Elongate, black, brown, yellow or red, sometimes bicoloured, almost always clothed with decumbent and/or erect hairs. Antennal club, if present, very weak; head usually abruptly constricted behind eyes to form neck, antennal insertions exposed; eyes not to only slightly emarginate; apical segment of maxillary palp slightly to strongly expanded apically, often securiform or cultriform; pronotum without lateral carinae, almost always constricted at middle, near base, or at base and apex; mesepisterna meet or almost meet at middle; penultimate tarsal segment lobed beneath; first two ventrites usually free. Larvae elongate, parallel-sided, lightly sclerotised or occasionally with dark and light pattern dorsally. Antennal sensorium usually broad and dome-like; usually with single pair of well-developed stemmata (occasionally five); median endocarina sometimes present; mandibular mola usually reduced and sub-basal; mala usually simple (occasionally cleft); S9 usually simple (occasionally two basal teeth); urogomphi, if present, often with accessory mesal processes near base; segment 10 more or less transverse, posteroventrally oriented.

Anthicidae
    |--Ischaliinae LB91
    |--Macratria [Macratriinae] LB91
    |    `--M. australis King 1869 M86
    |--Lemodinae B14
    |    |--Lemodinus B14
    |    |--Trichananca B14
    |    |--Lagriomorpha LB91
    |    `--Lemodes B14
    |         |--L. atricollis Oberthür 1884 M86
    |         |--L. coccinea Boheman 1858 B14
    |         |--L. elongata B14
    |         |--L. mastersi Macleay 1872 M86
    |         `--L. splendens B14
    |--Eurygeniinae B14
    |    |--Pergetus campanulatus (LeConte 1874) B14
    |    |--Rilettius B14
    |    |--Qadrius B14
    |    |--Egestriomima LB91
    |    |--Eurygenius wickhami Cockerell 1917 P92
    |    |--Ictistygna LB91
    |    |    |--I. adusta Pascoe 1866 M86
    |    |    `--I. vetula Pascoe 1866 M86
    |    `--Egestria LB91
    |         |--E. griseolineata Fairm. 1879 M86
    |         |--E. pallitibia Fairm. 1879 M86
    |         |--E. suturalis Pascoe 1871 M86
    |         `--E. taeniata Pascoe 1871 M86
    |--Anthicinae B14
    |    |  i. s.: Mecynotarsus LB91
    |    |           |--M. albellus Pascoe 1866 M86
    |    |           |--M. concolor King 1869 M86
    |    |           |--M. kingi Macleay 1872 M86
    |    |           |--M. kreusleri King 1869 M86
    |    |           |--M. mastersi Macleay 1872 M86
    |    |           `--M. ziczac King 1869 M86
    |    |         Tomoderus La Ferté-Sénectère 1848 LB91, H61
    |    |           |--T. microcephalus Pic 1903 H61
    |    |           `--T. vinctus Erichs. 1842 M86
    |    |--Formicomini LB91
    |    `--Anthicini B14
    |         |--Anthicus H61
    |         |--Amblyderus B14
    |         `--Acanthinus B14
    |              |--A. argentinus (Pic 1913) B14
    |              `--A. australiensis B14
    `--Notoxus Geoffroy 1762 H61 [Notoxinae B14]
         |--N. alluaudi Pic 1907 [incl. N. madecassus Pic 1953] H61
         |--N. australasiae Laf. 1848 M86
         |--N. binotatus C01
         |--N. brincki van Hille 1961 H61
         |--N. calcaratus Horn 1884 B14
         |--N. cribripennis B35
         |--N. cucullatus La Ferté-Sénectère 1848 H61
         |--N. ephippium Boisduval 1835 B35
         |--N. guttulatus Buck 1958 H61
         |--N. hiltoni van Hille 1961 H61
         |--N. hirsutus B14
         |--N. inconstans La Ferté-Sénectère 1848 H61
         |--N. litigiosus H61
         |--N. mauritanicus LaFerté-Sénectère 1847 E12
         |--N. monoceros (Linnaeus 1761) K08 [=Anthicus monoceros L02]
         |--N. pantomelas Boisduval 1835 B35
         |--N. pilosus H61
         |--N. porcatus B35
         |--N. pulcher Pic 1901 H61
         |--N. rudebecki van Hille 1961 H61
         |--N. scenicus La Ferté-Sénectère 1848 H61
         `--N. violaceus B35

Anthicidae incertae sedis:
  Zealanthicus sulcatus Werner & Chandler 1995 ED04
  Pseudonotoxus Pic 1899 H61
    |--P. brevis H61
    |--P. photophilus van Hille 1961 H61
    `--P. punctatus Pic 1932 H61
  Endomia Castelnau 1840 [incl. Ochthenomus Schmidt 1842] H61
    |--‘Ochthenomus’ bivittatus Truqui 1855 G89
    |--E. elongata (Pic 1895) [=Ochthenomus elongatus] H61
    |--E. obscura (Pic 1895) [=Ochthenomus obscurus] H61
    `--‘Ochthenomus’ punctatus LaFerté-Sénectère 1847 E12
  Egestrina MC13
  Ischyropalpus nitidulus L86
  Protomacratria P92

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B35] Boisduval, J. B. 1835. Voyage de Découvertes de l’Astrolabe. Exécuté par ordre du Roi, pendant les années 1826–1827–1828–1829, sous le commandement de M. J. Dumont d'Urville. Faune entomologique de l'océan Pacifique, avec l'illustration des insectes nouveaux recueillis pendant le voyage vol. 2. Coléoptères et autres ordres. J. Tastu: Paris.

[B14] Bouchard, P. (ed.) 2014. The Book of Beetles: A lifesize guide to six hundred of nature's gems. Ivy Press: Lewes (United Kingdom).

[C01] Csiki, E. 1901. Bogarak [Coleopteren]. In: Horváth, G. (ed.) Zichy Jenő Gróf Harmadik Ázsiai Utazása [Dritte Asiatische Forschungsreise des Grafen Eugen Zichy] vol. 2. Zichy Jenő Gróf Harmadik Ázsiai Utazásának Állattani Eredményei [Zoologische Ergebnisse der Dritten Asiatischen Forschungsreise des Grafen Eugen Zichy] pp. 75–120. Victor Hornyánszky: Budapest, and Karl W. Hierseman: Leipzig.

[E12] Evenhuis, N. L. 2012. Publication and dating of the Exploration Scientifique de l’Algérie: Histoire Naturelle des Animaux Articulés (1846–1849) by Pierre Hippolyte Lucas. Zootaxa 3448: 1–61.

[ED04] Ewers, R. M., & R. K. Didham. 2004. A first assessment of New Zealand beetles restricted to large forest areas. Weta 27: 33–40.

[G89] Gestro, R. 1889. Viaggio ab Assab nel Mar Rosso dei signori G. Doria ed O. Beccari con il R. Avviso “Esploratore” dal 16 Novembre 1879 al 26 Febbraio 1880.—IV. Coleotteri. Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Genova, Serie 2^a, 7: 5–72.

[H61] Hille, J. C. van. 1961. Coleoptera: Anthicidae. In: Hanström, B., P. Brinck & G. Rudebeck (eds) South African Animal Life: Results of the Lund University Expedition in 1950–1951 vol. 8 pp. 217–258. Almqvist & Wiksell: Uppsala.

[K08] Klaus, D. 2008. Triungulinus-Aggregationen von Meloë proscarabaeus L.—Beobachtungen aus Sachsen-Anhalt und Sachsen (Insecta, Coleoptera, Meloidae). Mauritiana 20 (2): 371–380.

[L02] Latreille, P. A. 1802. Histoire Naturelle, générale et particulière des crustacés et des insectes vol. 3. Familles naturelles des genres. F. Dufart: Paris.

[LB91] Lawrence, J. F., & E. B. Britton. 1991. Coleoptera (beetles). In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers 2^nd ed. vol. 2 pp. 543–683. Melbourne University Press: Carlton (Victoria).

[L86] Lindquist, E. E. 1986. The world genera of Tarsonemidae (Acari: Heterostigmata): a morphological, phylogenetic, and systematic revision, with a reclassification of family-group taxa in the Heterostigmata. Memoirs of the Entomological Society of Canada 118 (S136): 1–517.

[MC13] Majer, J. D., S. K. Callan, K. Edwards, N. R. Gunawardene & C. K. Taylor. 2013. Baseline survey of the terrestrial invertebrate fauna of Barrow Island. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 83: 13–112.

[M86] Masters, G. 1886. Catalogue of the described Coleoptera of Australia. Part IV. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales, series 2, 1 (2): 259–380.

[P92] Poinar, G. O., Jr. 1992. Life in Amber. Stanford University Press: Stanford.

Last updated: 4 April 2022.