Paederus

Paederus riparius, from here.

Belongs within: Paederini.

Paederus is a diverse genus of staphylinid beetles, generally coloured in contrasting patterns of red and black. Many species are found in damp habitats alongside rivers or in marshy fields. A number of species produce pederin and other haemolymph compounds that can cause severe dermatitis upon contacting human skin (Newton et al. 2001).

Characters (from Fagel 1961): Pronotum and prosternum not separate; weak prosternal extension; abdomen thick; pleurites well marked; sternite 1 with strong longitudinal carina; median lobe of aedeagus with ventral and dorsal lamella, median opening, parameres generally symmetrical, fused to median lobe over large part of their length and carrying numerous rows of bristles which do not reach the apex.

Paederus Fabricius 1775 NT01 (see below for synonymy)
    |--P. adelaidae Blackb. 1887 M96
    |--P. angusticeps F61
    |--P. australis B35
    |--P. caffer Boheman 1848 F61
    |--P. cruenticollis [incl. P. cingulatus] M96
    |--P. fastuosus F61
    |--P. fuscipes Curtis 1823 (see below for synonymy) F61
    |--P. gestroi M86
    |--P. impressipennis F61
    |--P. littoralis LC20
    |--P. littorarius LC20
    |--P. longipennis G89
    |--P. meyricki Blackb. 1891 M96
    |--P. nigripes Bernhauer 1932 F61
    |--P. nigrolineatus F61
    |--P. obliteratus N90
    |--P. riparius (Linnaeus 1758) B14
    |--P. rudebecki Fagel 1961 F61
    |--P. simsoni Blackb. 1894 M96
    `--P. termitophilus Wasmann 1911 S57

Paederus Fabricius 1775 NT01 [incl. Leucopaederus Casey 1905 NT01, Neopaederus Blackwelder 1939 F61, Paederillus Casey 1905 NT01, Paederomorphus Gautier des Cottes 1862 F61; Paederina]

Paederus fuscipes Curtis 1823 [incl. P. abyssinicus Cam. 1950, P. aestuans Erichson 1839-1840, P. alfierii Koch 1934, P. angolensis Er. 1843, P. erichsoni Wollaston 1867, P. mayumbeanus Cameron 1939] F61

*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).

[F61] Fagel, G. 1961. Coleoptera (Staphylinidae): Paederinae. In: Hanström, B., P. Brinck & G. Rudebeck (eds) South African Animal Life: Results of the Lund University Expedition in 1950–1951 vol. 8 pp. 259–295. Almqvist & Wiksell: Uppsala.

[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.

[LC20] Lü, L., C.-Y. Cai, X. Zhang, A. F. Newton, M. K. Thayer & H.-Z. Zhou. 2020. Linking evolutionary mode to palaeoclimate change reveals rapid radiations of staphylinoid beetles in low-energy conditions. Current Zoology 66 (4): 435–444.

[M86] Macleay, W. 1886. The insects of the Fly River, New Guinea, "Coleoptera". Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales, series 2, 1 (1): 136–157.

[M96] Masters, G. 1896. Catalogue of the described Coleoptera of Australia. Supplement, part II. Dytiscidae, Gyrinidae, Hydrophyllidae, Staphylinidae, Pselaphidae, Paussidae, Silphidae, Scaphididae, Histeridae, Phalacridae, Nitidulidae, Trogositidae, Colydiidae, Cucujidae, Cryptophagidae, Lathridiidae, Mycetophagidae, Dermestidae, Byrrhidae, Parnidae, Heteroceridae. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 21 (Suppl.): 695–754.

[N90] Newton, A. F., Jr. 1990. Insecta: Coleoptera Staphylinidae adults and larvae. In: Dindal, D. L. (ed.) Soil Biology Guide pp. 1137–1174. John Wiley & Sones: New York.

[NT01] Newton, A. F., M. K. Thayer, J. S. Ashe & D. S. Chandler. 2001. Staphylinidae Latreille, 1802. In: Arnett, R. H., Jr & M. C. Thomas (eds) American Beetles vol. 1. Archostemata, Myxophaga, Adephaga, Polyphaga: Staphyliniformia pp. 272–418. CRC Press: Boca Raton.

[S57] Seevers, C. H. 1957. A monograph on the termitophilous Staphylinidae (Coleoptera). Fieldiana Zoology 40: 1–334.

Last updated: 10 April 2022.