Creophilus lanio, (ERICHSON)

Clarke, Dave J., 2011, Testing the phylogenetic utility of morphological character systems, with a revision of Creophilus Leach (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society (Zool. J. Linn. Soc.) 163 (3), pp. 723-812 : 784-787

8. CREOPHILUS LANIO (ERICHSON)

( FIGS 2H–J, 3Q, 4J, 7B, 29, 30)

Staphylinus lanio Erichson, 1839: 352 . Type locality: ‘Terra Van-Diemenii’; Gravenhorst, 1806: 126.

Staphylinus oculatus var. Gravenhorst; Dejean, 1821: 21; Erichson, 1839: 352 (synonym of C. lanio ).

Creophilus lanio ; Fauvel, 1875: 56; Bernhauer & Schubert, 1914: 398; Lea, 1925: 229 (synonym of erythrocephalus ); Steel, 1949: 58, figs 2, 5, 7 and 8; Radford, 1981: 174 (as C. lania , error for lanio ); Herman, 2001b: 3317.

Emus lanio ; Fauvel, 1877: 250; Fauvel, 1878a: 248; Fauvel, 1878b: 541.

Creophilus erythrocephalus var. lanio ; Olliff, 1887: 492–493.

Type material: Staphylinus lanio Erichson. Lectotype (here designated). ♀, ‘[orange] Type/ 5886/ [grey] lanio| Er.| terra van Diem [Tasmania], Sch/ [lilac] Hist.-Coll. ( Coleoptera )| Nr. 5886| Staphylinus lanio Erichs. | Terra v. Diem., Schayer| Zool. Mus. Berlin / [red] SYNTYPUS | Staphylinus | lanio Erichson, 1839 | labeled by MNHUB 2004/ FMNH-INS 0000 016 774/ [red] LECTOTYPE | Staphylinus | lanio Erichson, 1839 | designated by| D. J. Clarke 2008’ (in ZMHB). Specimen missing left mesotarsus. Paralectotypes (3). All with labels ‘[orange] Type/ [lilac] Hist.-Coll. ( Coleoptera )| Nr. 5886| Staphylinus lanio Erichs. | Terra v. Diem., Schayer| Zool. Mus. Berlin / [red] SYNTYPUS | Staphylinus | lanio Erichson, 1839 | labeled by MNHUB 2004/ [yellow] PARA- LECTOTYPE | Staphylinus | lanio Erichson, 1839 | designated by| D. J. Clarke 2008’: 2♂, ‘ FMNH-INS 0000 016 775’; ‘ FMNH-INS 0000 016 777’; 1♀, ‘ FMNH-INS 0000 016 776’ (in ZMHB).

Other material examined: 2743 specimens. See supporting information, Appendix S 1.

Diagnosis: With characters of the erythrocephalus - group; head orange-red, with large diffuse subquadrate or cordiform black spot ( Fig. 7B); right mandible with three teeth ( Fig. 29A); elytra black, humeri glabrous, conspicuously sculptured; abdominal segment IX orangeish-brown; parasutural 1 and humeral macrosetae absent, tergal chaetotaxic formula = 4-6-6–6-4-6.

Description: Measurements ( N = 10♂, 10♀). Forebody length: ♂ 5.5–9.8 mm, ♀ 5.3–7.8 mm. See supporting Table S 5 for comparison of ranges of male and female ratios. Head. Head orange-red, narrowly black around mouthparts and antennal fossae, with large diffuse irregularly subquadrate or cordiform black spot ( Fig. 7B), usually concealing dorsal tentorial pits, frequently with midlongitudinal line of black pigment continuing to frontoclypeal margin and to neck; strongly trapezoidal, much wider posteriorly; HW/ HL = 1.35–1.59; shining, without distinct microsculpture; eyes small to moderately large ( EYL / HL = 0.38–0.56), dorsolateral, lateral margins of head visible in dorsal view (not obscured by eye); HL 1/ HL 2 greater in females than males (♂ = 1.21–1.83, ♀ = 1.63–2.00); antennae as in Figure 29B, antennomeres 1–6 black, 7–11 greyish-black, 11 as long or very slightly longer than 9–10 together; mandibles as in Figure 29A, moderately longer than head in large males, subequal to head in females ( ML / HL ♂ = 0.81– 1.32, ♀ = 0.82–1.05), right mandible with three teeth, T 3 largest. Thorax and abdomen. Pronotum ( Fig. 29F) slightly transverse ( PW / PL = 1.09–1.25); PL 1.22–1.45 ¥ ESL; with basolateral margins distinctly emarginate, hind angles distinct; with sparse peripheral setae and short, sparse vestiture on lower anterolateral declivities; elytra uniformly black, humeral regions shining, distinctly callused, disc densely setose, sparsely rugosely sculptured, especially on humeri; wings fully developed, black with distinct black spot in medial field between MP 3 and MP 4 veins; abdomen shining black, except for lightly pigmented orangeish-brown ninth segment; tergite VII with well-developed palisade fringe; styli bicoloured, orangeish-brown basally and black distally. Male genitalia and secondary sexual characters. Ventrolateral carina of large males indistinct, partially obliterated by punctures and secondary anastomosing ridges. Aedeagus as in Figure 29E; median lobe apex extended into long blunt point ( Fig. 29I), produced slightly dorsally at tip, with paired apicolateral sclerites (as) separated from sclerotized median lobe by distinct membranous strip. Paramere as in Figure 29D. Internal sac inverted as in Figure 29E; ventral sclerite (vs) small, wider than long, distinctly notched apically ( Fig. 25G). Female internal genitalia. Internal female genitalia as in Figure 29C; vaginal plate with paired lateral sclerites (pls), posterolateral areas membranous; vaginal fold forming large finely rugose sclerite ( Fig. 29C, vf). Chaetotaxy. Elytra without parasutural 1 and humeral macrosetae; elytral discal series with 3–4 macrosetae; metaventrital macroseta absent or undetected; tergal chaetotaxic formula = 4-6-6-6-4-6, medial macrosetae absent on tergite III, inner lateral macrosetae absent on tergite VII; second gonocoxal macroseta absent.

Variation: The dorsomedial spot in C. lanio is very variable. Occasionally, usually in smaller specimens, it is expanded to cover most of the area between the eyes, although always surrounded by the usual orange coloration of the head.

Comparison: Creophilus lanio may be immediately distinguished from C. erythrocephalus and C. imitator by the diffuse, never circular cranial spot and by the lightly pigmented ninth abdominal segment. Contrary to Steel (1949: 58), all specimens I examined had uniformly shining black elytra, none with a ‘purplish reflection’. Although Cameron (1952: 255) described the elytral sculpturing of C. imitator as ‘less rugose than in lanio ’ it is more distinctive in C. imitator .

Distribution ( Fig. 30): Australia: New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria, southern Queensland. One record from Western Australia (no locality given, possibly mislabelled).

Biology and ecology: Creophilus lanio is known mostly from forested areas, with few records from pasture and coastal habitats. Most collections are from carrion-baited pitfall traps. Specimens have also been taken at light, in yellow pan traps, in Malaise and window traps, and in dung of various sorts. Habitat: drier woodlands to temperate rainforests of many kinds (e.g. Acacia , Banksia , Eucalyptus , Nothofagus , and Pomaderris ). Altitude: sea level to 1650 m. Phenology: throughout the year. Other biology and lifehistory characteristics are unknown. Larvae and pupae are unknown.