Vol 99, No 7 (2019)

The chromosomes of eight species of Melinopterus Mulsant, 1842 are described and illustrated, five of them, M. punctatosulcatus (Sturm, 1805), M. maroccanus Rößner, 2018, M. villarreali (Baraud, 1975), M. abeillei (Sietti, 1903) and M. tingens (Reitter, 1892), for the first time. Melinopterus villarreali is shown to be a valid species, distinct from M. sphacelatus (Panzer, 1798). All the species have distinctive karyotypes comprising 2n = 18 + Xy (♂), 2n = 18 + XX (♀), but those of female M. villarreali and M. tingens are difficult to distinguish because, although their X chromosomes are of different sizes, it is difficult to pick out the correct chromosome.

The genus Bioramix Bates, 1879 from Nepal is revised. Seven valid species are distinguished, including a new one: Bioramix (Leipopleura) medvedevisp. n. from Dolpo, which was misidentified as B. (L.) politicollis (Kaszab, 1940) by the previous authors. Lectotypes for the following species are designated: Bioramix ovalis Bates, 1879, Botiras oblongulus Fairmaire, 1898, Platyscelis aenescens Blair, 1923, and Platynoscelis kochi Kaszab, 1940. Photographs of the habitus of the adults and a key to species from Nepal are given.

A new genus and species Medvedevia glebigen. et sp. n. of the tribe Blaptini is described from eastern Nuristan, Afghanistan. The new genus belongs to the subtribe Blaptina. It is closely related to the genus Blaps Fabricius, 1775, which is evidenced by its body shape, structure of tarsomeres, and presence of the mucron. Medvedeviagen. n. differs from all Blaptini in the following characters: very wide mentum concealing the base of the labium and maxillae; not beaded pronotum; very wide processes of the mesoventrite and of abdominal ventrite 1; unusual structure of the aedeagus (basal piece is weakly C-curved, parameres are deeply cleft). New synonymy is established: subtribe Blaptina Leach, 1815 = Dilina Ren in Ren et al., 2016, syn. n.

Brief morphological characteristics of the genera Morimotodes Grebennikov, 2014, Leiosoma Stephens, 1829, and Otibazo Morimoto, 1961 are given. Morimotodes igorisp. n., M. ilyaisp. n., M. politussp. n., M. striatussp. n., M. magnificussp. n., and M. medvedevisp. n. are described from Sichuan and Yunnan provinces of China. A key to 6 species of the genus Morimotodes is presented.

This work is based on the comparative analysis of the literature data on the fauna, distribution, and ecology of darkling beetles from Eastern Kara Kum, as well as on the results of year-round study of the author in 1972–1994 in the territory of the Repetek Biosphere Reserve. The modern fauna of the darkling beetles of the Eastern Kara Kum includes 92 species of 55 genera. Among them, Turanian endemics account for about 75% of the species, including 53% of the South Turanian, 11% of the Kara Kum, and 17% of the Eastern Kara Kum species; and 38, 24, 13 and 5% of endemic genera, respectively. Darkling beetles of the Eastern Kara Kum belong to more than 25 life forms. Psammophiles constitute about 51%, including psammophiles of the first order 19, the second order 15, and the third order 17% of the species. Among psammophiles of the first, second, and third orders endemics of the Eastern Kara Kum are 35, 29 and 25% species, respectively; Kara Kum—12, 14 and 6%, South Turanian—24, 50 and 44%, and Turan as a whole 88–100% species. The total number of psammophilic genera of darkling beetles in the Eastern Kara Kum is 32 (58%); 19 (59%) of them are endemics of the Turan sand deserts. The formation of the fauna of darkling beetles of the Eastern Kara Kum includes two main stages: from the beginning of the Pliocene (5.3 million years ago) to the end of the Middle Pleistocene (126 thousand years ago), and from the end of the Middle Pleistocene to the Holocene.

Seven species from 5 groups of the weevil genus Ceutorhynchus Germ, have been found on a spring and early summer ruderal ephemeral crucifer, woodland draba (Draba nemorosa L.), in the southern regions of Eastern Siberia. Three species (C kipchak Kor, C. ? unguicularis Thorns., and C. klementzorum Kor.) have been found only on this species (the latter two also on the closely related Draba sibirica (Pall.) Thell.). Ceutorhynchu cochleariae Gyll. occurs on the woodland draba at the eastern, and C. dauricus Kor, at the western border of their ranges and both have other crucifers as main hosts; the Holarctic C. querceti Gyll. feeds on D. nemorosa (or on D. sibirica) in the areas where its main host does not occur, and the Dauro-Mongolian C. seniculus C. Bris. develops on many other crucifers besides the draba. Draba nemorosa is the first known host of the Dauro-Mongolian C. klementzorum.

Two new species of the genus Dymasius J. Thomson, 1864 are described. Dymasius medvedevisp. n. (southern India) is similar to D. minor Gahan, 1906, but differs in the very well expressed longitudinal stripes of the elytra, coarser sculpture in their apical part, the length ratio of antennomeres 3–6, the less strongly thickened antennomeres 3–5 in the apical part of the male, and in some other features. Dymasius lubosisp. n. (northern Vietnam) resembles D. simplex Gressitt et Rondon, 1970, but differs clearly in the longer antennae, the more strongly elongate several apical antennomeres, the sharper longitudinal carina on antennomere 1 dorsally, the more strongly developed lateral tubercles of the pronotum, the bicolorous elytra, and other characters.

The tenebrionid species Blaps scabiosa (tribe Blaptini) is redescribed and illustrated. This species was twice described under the same name by Baudi di Selve in 1874 from Tashkent (now Uzbekistan) and by Faust in 1875 from Tash (Iran, Semnan Province). In 1876 Faust synonymized his species with Baudi’s species. Nabozhenko interpreted these taxa as two distinct species and gave a new name B. neoscabiosa Nabozhenko, 2008 to the Iranian B. scabiosa Faust, 1875 to eliminate homonymy. This species has never been found in Tien Shan and occurs only in Eastern Alborz Mountains. The type locality “Tashk.” (Tashkent) should be corrected to “Tash” (Iran, Semnan). After examination of the type specimens we have established that the Baudi’s and Faust’s taxa are conspecific, and the following synonymy is proposed: Blaps scabiosa Baudi di Selve, 1874 = B. scabiosa Faust, 1875, syn. resurr. = B. neoscabiosa Nabozhenko, 2008, syn. n. The lectotype of Blaps scabiosa Faust, 1875 is designated.

Two new species of buprestid beetles, Acmaeodera (Acmaeodera) dembickyisp. n. from Iran and A. (Acmaeotethya) arcuanotasp. n. from Iran and Oman, are described, illustrated and compared with closely related species.