Podistra (Pidostria), KAZANTSEV, 2023

KAZANTSEV, SERGEY V., 2023, Do the Palaearctic subgenera of Podistra Motschulsky, 1839 really occur in North America: description of P. (Pidostria), subgen. nov. (Coleoptera: Cantharidae), Zootaxa 5263 (3), pp. 389-400 : 397-398

subgenus Pidostria subgen. nov.

type species Telephorus insipidus Fall, 1907

insipida Fall, 1907: 235 (Telephorus) . USA (New Mexico).

genus Podistra , species incertae sedis beauprei Pic, 1906: 81 [replacement name]. Algeria.

= latiuscula Bourgeois, 1906: 97 [homonym].

japonica Kiesenwetter, 1874: 279. Japan.

nonveilleri G. Müller, 1946: 113. Montenegro (Komovi Mts, 2300 m).

sanbernardensis Fender, 1972: 16 (Pseudoabsidia) . USA (California).

sierrae McKey-Fender, 1950: 76 (Absidia) . USA (California).

vaulogeri Bourgeois, 1905: 106. Algeria.

Six species are included in Podistra incertae sedis, as they were not available for study and/or no information was provided about their aedeagi in the descriptions. Podistra (Absidia) pentheri Ganglbauer, 1922 from the east Adriatic coast is excluded from Podistra , as the structure of its male genitalia does not allow its attribution to this genus, its aedeagus being characteristic of Pakabsidia . Thus, Podistra (A.) pentheri , although not quite fitting in the latter genus either, having male antennae with tiny glabrous areas, is tentatively transferred to it as Pakabsidia pentheri ( Ganglbauer, 1922) , comb. nov. Podistra longicornis Wittmer, 1978 from Kashmir is also excluded from the genus, as the structure of its aedeagus, different from that of Podistra , is rather Cantharis -like; besides, Podistra reductipennis Wittmer, 1966 , near which it was placed ( Wittmer, 1978), has already been transferred to Cantharis Linnaeus, 1758 ( Svihla, 1992) . Therefore, P. longicornis is also transferred to Cantharis , as Cantharis longicornis ( Wittmer, 1978) , comb. nov.

The distribution areas of the Podistra subgenera are shown in Figs 6 and 7 (those of species incertae sedis not represented). Absidia has the largest and practically uninterrupted range, extending from the Atlantic coast to East Siberia. Hemipodistra is confined to the Alps, Carpathian mountains and the eastern Caucasus, with a clear-cut disjunctive distribution pattern. Podistra s. str. is almost as widespread as Absidia , but its distribution area is almost as disjunctive as that of Hemipodistra , with the bulk of its species confined to the Caucasus, only one species occurring in two isolated patches in Central Europe and two species registered also in the Far East and East Siberia. Pidostria subgen. nov. is the only Podistra subgenus to occur in the Nearctic realm, in an isolated pocket in New Mexico.

Figures

FIGURE 6. Distribution of Podistra in Eastern Hemisphere: pinkish areas—Podistra s. str.; greenish areas—P.subgen. Absidia; red stars—P. subgen. Hemipodistra.

FIGURE 7. Distribution of Podistra (Pidostria) subgen. nov. in Western Hemisphere (red star).