Eleodes (Eleodes) eschscholtzi Solier, 1848

Johnston, M. Andrew, Fleming, David, Franz, Nico M. & Smith, Aaron D., 2015, Amphidorini Leconte (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) of Arizona: Keys and Species Accounts, The Coleopterists Bulletin (mo 14) 69, pp. 27-54 : 46

Eleodes (Eleodes) eschscholtzi Solier, 1848

( Fig. 6A–B )

Eleodes wickhami Horn, 1891

Diagnosis. Body elongate, robust. Metafemora sinuate, concave ventrally in basal half, straightening medially and recurved apically, more or less concave dorsally in apical half. Males with apical third of metatibia dorsoventrally flattened, twice as wide as basal half. Pronotum subquadrate, anterior angles produced, acute. Prosternum projected posteriorly of procoxae. Elytra punctate striate, striae more or less feebly impressed, males with caudal extension, females rather acute posteriorly.

Distribution. Pima and Santa Cruz Counties, Arizona. Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, Mexico.

Remarks. The males of this species are quite distinctive with their caudate elytra and heavily modified metatibia. The females are slightly less distinctive, but the sinuate metafemora serve to separate this species from any other in Arizona. Not frequently collected, this species may be found from Nogales through Green Valley and rarely into the Tucson area.

Figures

Fig. 6. Eleodes species, dorsal habitus. A) E. eschscholtzi, male, B) E. eschscholtzi, female; C) E. caudiferus, D) E. spinipes macrurus, male. Scale bars = 1 cm.