Leptobium tronqueti LECOQ 1986

Assing, V., 2010, A revision of Leptobium CASEY. VI. A revalidation, a new synonymy, and additional records (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Paederinae), Linzer biologische Beiträge 42 (1), pp. 499-506 : 502-503

Leptobium tronqueti LECOQ 1986 ; revalidated (Figs 11-12)

Leptobium tronqueti LECOQ 1986: 357 f.

M a t e r i a l e x a m i n e d: Spain: A n d a l u c í a: 16 exs., Cádiz , 20 km N Tarifa, 100 m, 36°09'N, 5°38'W, loamy shore of reservoir, under stones, 29.XII.2009, leg. Assing & Wunderle (cAss, cWun) ; 7 exs., Cádiz , 20 km N Tarifa, 36°09'N, 5°38'W, 110 m, loamy pasture near reservoir shore, under stones, 30.XII.2009, leg. Assing & Wunderle (cAss, cWun) ; 2 exs., Cádiz , 20 km N Tarifa, 36°10'N, 5°38'W, 110 m, shore of reservoir, loamy pasture, under stones, 31.XII.2009, leg. Wunderle (cWun) ; 1 ex., Cádiz , 4 km NNW Tarifa, 36°03'N, 5°37'W, 10 m, road margin, flooded meadow, under stone, 26.XII.2009, leg. Wunderle (cWun) .

C o m m e n t: Since the holotype of L. tronqueti and the previously examined addi- tional material were externally indistinguishable from the female lectotype of L. korbi , the former was recently synonymised with the latter ( ASSING 2005). However, an examination of the new material listed above and in the following section revealed that at least two species of very similar external morphology are present in the province of Cádiz, from where both L. korbi and L. tronqueti were described. Fortunately, it was possible to distinguish the females of both species based on their secondary sexual characters. Those of L. tronqueti are somewhat modified, probably an adaptation to the highly derived morphology of the aedeagus of the species (see illustrations in ASSING 2005). A subsequent re-examination and dissection of the lectotype of L. korbi in the collections of the NHMW eventually revealed that it is not conspecific with the holotype of L. tronqueti , which is consequently revalidated. The female secondary sexual characters are illustrated in Figs 11-12. For details on the separation of L. tronqueti and L. korbi see the following section.

A re-examination of the females in the collections of P. Wunderle and the author revealed that, with two exceptions (see material examined in the section on L. korbi ), the specimens previously attributed to L. korbi refer, in fact, to L. tronqueti , suggesting that the latter is the more widespread and less rare species of the two. In one locality, both species were found together, but L. tronqueti was much rarer than L. korbi .