Styphrus Motschulsky, 1845

Lackner, Tomáš, 2010, Review of the Palaearctic genera of Saprininae (Coleoptera: Histeridae), Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae (suppl.) 50, pp. 1-254 : 215

Styphrus Motschulsky, 1845

Styphrus Motschulsky, 1845: 54 . Type species: Styphrus corpulentus Motschulsky, 1845 , by monotypy.

Styphrus: JAKOBSON (1911) : 641, 651 (partim); REICHARDT (1925): 138; REICHARDT (1926): 15; REICHARDT (1941): 154, 174; PEYERIMHOFF (1936): 214, 223; KRYZHANOVSKIJ & REICHARDT (1976): 111, 186; MAZUR (1984): 78; MAZUR (1997): 245; MAZUR (2004): 101.

Diagnosis. Cuticle slightly metallic; frontal disc smooth; frontal stria straight, often interrupted medially; eyes convex; pronotal foveae vaguely impressed, often absent; disc of pronotum with sparse punctures along lateral margins, otherwise smooth; pronotal hypomeron setose; inner subhumeral stria linked basally with humeral elytral stria, long, reaching approximately four-fifths of elytral length apically; elytral epipleura glabrous. Prosternal process flattened, setose, pre-apical foveae absent; lateral prosternal striae shortened, ‘open’ apically, carinal prosternal striae subparallel, approximate; lateral sides of mesoventrite, metaventrite, metepisternum + fused meso- and metepimeron and all visible abdominal sternites setose. Claws of meso- and metatarsi only slightly curved, almost straight, thin, as long as or longer than apical-most tarsomere.

Biology. Styphrus corpulentus is found mostly on carcasses of gerbils, turtles etc., occasionally caught also at light ( KRYZHANOVSKIJ & REICHARDT 1976).

Distribution. Styphrus corpulentus is distributed across the deserts of Central Asia and southern Russia.

Species examined. Styphrus corpulentus Motschulsky, 1845 .

Discussion. Styphrus corpulentus is most similar to the species of the genus Saprinus , but can be easily distinguished from them by the impunctate frontal disc as well as only slightly bent (almost straight), thin claws of apical-most meso- and metatarsomeres, that are as long (or slightly longer) than apical-most meso- and metatarsomeres. The sensory structures of the antennal club and absent pre-apical foveae indicate that this taxon is probably sister to Saprinus , as already indicated by KRYZHANOVSKIJ & REICHARDT (1976: 186). Otherwise Styphrus is mostly characterised by homoplasies e.g. setose prosternal process, underside of body with vestiture or almost straight thin claws of meso- and metatarsi.

Remarks. The diagnosis of this genus is based only on species Styphrus corpulentus Motschulsky, 1845 . The genus Styphrus contains another Palaearctic species, S. peyerimhoffi Chobaut, 1923 that belongs in fact to another genus and whose taxonomic status will be treated in a subsequent paper.