Lomechusa Gravenhorst, 1806

Chen, Yong-Jie & Zhou, Hong-Zhang, 2007, Taxonomy of the myrmecophilous genus Lomechusa (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae: Lomechusini) from China, Zootaxa 1606, pp. 29-39 : 30-31

Genus Lomechusa Gravenhorst, 1806

Gravenhorst, 1806: 178; Latreille, 1810: 427 (type designation); Erichson, 1839: 202; Kraatz, 1856: 114; Wasmann, 1896: 244; Tottenham, 1939: 224 (synonymy); Blackwelder, 1952: 483 (synonymy); Smetana, 2004: 237 (catalogue); Hlaváċ, 2005: 207 (revision). Type species: Staphylinus emarginatus Paykull, 1789 , subsequently designated by Latreille, 1810: 427.

Synonymy: Atemeles Dillwyn, 1829: 63 ; Westwood, 1838: 48 (type designation); Kraatz, 1856: 112; Thomson, 1860: 243; Wasmann, 1896: 253; Fenyes, 1920: 302. (Type species: Lomechusa paradoxa Gravenhorst, 1806 , subsequently designated by Westwood, 1838: 48)

Atemeles Stephens, 1832: 107 ; Ganglbauer, 1895: 109; Reitter, 1909: 41; Bernhauer & Scheerpeltz, 1926: 712; Scheerpeltz, 1934: 1664; Blackwelder, 1952: 67 (listed as synonymic homonym of Atemeles Dillwyn, 1829 ); Lohse 1974: 228. (Type species: Atemeles paradoxa Gravenhorst, 1806 ).

Goniodes Stephens, 1829: 260 (nec Nitzsch, 1818); Blackwelder, 1952: 174. (Type species: Goniodes acuminata Stephens, 1829 , by monotypy).

Pterygatemeles Scheerpeltz, 1965: 361 ; Hlaváċ, 2005: 207 (synonymy). (Type species: Pterygatemeles malaisei Scheerpeltz, 1965 , by monotypy)

Diagnosis. According to Hlaváč (2005), the genus Lomechusa has the following diagnosis: body robust, parallel-sided; antennae more or less robust; lacinia with 2–3 apical or subapical spines; pronotum variable in shape and size, transverse and dull, usually with some depressions and microsculpture on dorsal surface, hypomeron large; elytra with sparse and very fine pubescence, hind corners well defined or absent; bases of pronotum and elytra lacking black erect setae.

Distribution. The genus is distributed throughout the whole Palaearctic and the northern part of the Oriental region.