A revision of Othius Stephens, 1829. VII. The species of the Eastern Palaearctic region east of the Himalayas (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae).

Abstract

Types and additional material of Othius from the Eastern Palaearctic region east of the Himalayas as well as from southern China and Taiwan are revised. 31 valid species and 2 subspecies are recognized; the identity of a further 3 species, whose types were not made available, remains dubious. The following new synonymies are established: O. medius Sharp = O. medius kusuii Ito, syn. n., = O. medius yakushimanus Ito, syn. n.; O. rosti Bernhauer = O. ussuriensis Coiffait, syn. n.; O. latus Sharp = O. stoetzneri Bernhauer, syn. n., = O. chongqingensis Zheng, syn. n., = O. latus ozakii Ito, syn. n.; O. punctatus Bernhauer = O. arisanus (Shibata), syn. n. Lectotypes are designated for O. medius Sharp, O. rosti Bernhauer, O. stoetzneri Bernhauer, and O. rufipennis Sharp. 19 new species and one new subspecies are described: O. bordonii sp. n. (China), O. latus gansuensis ssp. n. (China: Gansu), O. atavus sp. n. (China: Yunnan), O. lubricus sp. n. (China: Yunnan), O. discrepans sp. n. (China: Sichuan), O. excisus sp. n. (China: Sichuan), O. sculptipennis sp. n. (China: Sichuan), O. tuberipennis sp. n. (China: Yunnan), O. fibulifer sp. n. (China: Sichuan), O. wrasei sp. n. (China: Sichuan), O. smetanai sp. n. (Taiwan), O. aequabilis sp. n. (Taiwan), O. hamatus sp. n. (Taiwan), O. acutus sp. n. (Taiwan), O. reticulatus sp. n. (Taiwan), O. praecisus sp. n. (Taiwan), O. collapsus sp. n. (Taiwan), O. contumax sp. n. (Taiwan), and O. coniceps sp. n. (Taiwan). Comparative diagnoses are given for the species and subspecies treated and complemented by comments on phylogenetic relationships; revised biogeographical and the available bionomical data are compiled. The primary and secondary sexual characters are figured; for several species, the distribution and intraspecific morphological variation are illustrated. A diagnostic key is presented for the Othius species of the Eastern Palaearctic region east of the Himalayas. There is some evidence that both the Western Palaearctic and the Eastern Palaearctic species of Othius are monophyla; the former is distributed west and the latter east of the Caspian Sea, the only exception being the Western Himalayan O. kashmirica subgroup, which is closely related to the Western Palaearctic O. laeviusculus group. In the region east of the Himalayas, species diversity is highest in Yunnan and Sichuan (mainland China), and in Taiwan. The phylogenetics of the Taiwanese species are discussed, and conclusions regarding the colonization of the island are presented.

Keywords

Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Xantholininae, Othiini, Othius, Eastern Palaearctic, Taiwan, China, Japan, distribution, ecology, taxonomy, revision, new species, lectotype designation, new synonyms.

Nomenclatural Acts

arisanus Shibata, 1973 (Othiellus), syn. n. of Othius punctatus Bernhauer, 1922 (nom. n. pro puncticeps Bernhauer, 1916)
acutus Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
aequabilis Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
atavus Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
bordonii Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
chongquingensis Zheng, 1995 (Othius), syn. n. of Othius latus latus Sharp, 1874
collapsus Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
coniceps Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
contumax Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
discrepans Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
excisus Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
fibulifer Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
hamatus Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
lubricus Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
medius Sharp, 1874 (Othius), Lectotype
praecisus Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
reticulatus Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
rosti Bernhauer, 1907 (Othius), Lectotype
rufipennis Sharp, 1874 (Othius), Lectotype
sculptipennis Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
smetanai Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
stötzneri Bernhauer, 1931 (Othius), Lectotype; syn. n. of Othius latus latus Sharp, 1874
tuberipennis Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. nov.
ussuriensis Coiffait, 1974 (Othius), syn. n. of Othius rosti Bernhauer, 1907
wrasei Assing, 1999 (Othius), spec. n.
gansuensis Assing, 1999 (Othius latus), sspec. n.
ozakii Ito, 1993 (Othius latus), syn. n. of Othius latus latus Sharp, 1874
kusuii Ito, 1993 (Othius medius), syn. n. of Othius medius Sharp, 1874
yakushimanus Ito, 1993 (Othius medius), syn. n. of Othius medius Sharp, 1874