Latridiidae

Corticaria japonica, copyright Kohichiro Yoshida.

Belongs within: Coccinelloidea.

The Latridiidae are a group of minute beetles that feeds as adults and larvae on fungal spores, and are commonly found associated with dead vegetation or leaf litter (Lawrence & Britton 1991). A number of species are commonly found in food stores and have become widely dispersed worldwide.

Characters (from Lawrence & Britton 1991, as Lathridiidae): Minute; clypeus laterally expanded in front of antennal insertions; antenna ten- or eleven-segmented, with two- or three-segmented club, antennal scape usually large and more or less globular; pronotum usually much narrower than elytral bases; fore coxae projecting, trochantins concealed, fore coxal cavities internally and externally closed; elytral punctures more or less seriate; mid coxal cavities contiguous or narrowly separated, laterally closed; tarsi trimerous; abdomen with five or six ventrites, none connate. Larvae elongate, tapered posteriorly, lightly sclerotised except for head, with vestiture of long, fine setae or occasionally shorter, frayed setae; antennae relatively long; mandibles often partly membranous; mala obtuse.

<==Latridiidae B14
    |--Latridiinae B14
    |    |--Dienerella B14
    |    |    |--D. (Dienerella) filum (Aubé 1850) B14
    |    |    `--D. ruficollis [=Microgramme ruficollis] M83
    |    `--Lathridius LB91
    |         |--L. minutus LB91
    |         |--L. nodifer B70
    |         |--L. serratus [=Colydium (Latridius) serratum] G20
    |         `--L. transversus C01
    `--Corticariinae B14
         |--Cortinicara hirtalis LB91
         `--Corticaria B14
              |--C. elongata LB91
              |--C. fenestralis M83
              |--C. ferruginea LB91
              |--C. gibbosa C01
              |--C. japonica LB91
              |--C. pubescens C01
              |--C. serrata (Paykull 1798) B14
              `--C. transversalis C01

Latridiidae incertae sedis:
  Bicava E02
  Aridius LB91
    |--A. australicus LB91
    |--A. bifasciatus LB91
    `--A. nodifer LB91
  Melanophthalma B70
    |--M. australis B70
    |--M. distinguenda [=Latridius distinguendus] G89
    |--M. splendens M83
    `--M. zelandica M83
  Enicmus minutus B70
  Lithostygnus MC13
  Cartodere constricta LB91
  Adistemia watsoni LB91
  Eufallia MW15
  Coluocera maderae Wollaston 1854 W08
  Coninomus constrictus B70
  Succinimontia infleta RJ93

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

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

[B70] Britton, E. B. 1970. Coleoptera (beetles). In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers pp. 495–621. Melbourne University Press.

[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.

[E02] Emberson, R. M. 2002. The beetle (Coleoptera) fauna of the Chatham Islands: additions and corrections. New Zealand Entomologist 25: 69–77.

[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.

[G20] Goldfuss, G. A. 1820. Handbuch der Naturgeschichte vol. 3. Handbuch der Zoologie pt 1. Johann Leonhard Schrag: Nürnberg.

[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).

[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.

[M83] Martin, N. A. 1983. Miscellaneous observations on a pasture fauna: an annotated species list. DSIR Entomology Division Report 3: 1–98.

[MW15] McKenna, D. D., A. L. Wild, K. Kanda, C. L. Bellamy, R. G. Beutel, M. S. Caterino, C. W. Farnum, D. C. Hawks, M. A. Ivie, M. L. Jameson, R. A. B. Leschen, A. E. Marvaldi, J. V. McHugh, A. F. Newton, J. A. Robertson, M. K. Thayer, M. F. Whiting, J. F. Lawrence, A. Ślipiński, D. R. Maddison & B. D. Farrell. 2015. The beetle tree of life reveals that Coleoptera survived end-Permian mass extinction to diversify during the Cretaceous terrestrial revolution. Systematic Entomology 40 (4): 835–880.

[RJ93] Ross, A. J., & E. A. Jarzembowski. 1993. Arthropoda (Hexapoda; Insecta). In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Fossil Record 2 pp. 363–426. Chapman & Hall: London.

[W08] Wetterer, J. K. 2008. Worldwide spread of the longhorn crazy ant, Paratrechina longicornis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Myrmecological News 11: 137–149.

Last updated: 30 November 2020.