Boreocanthon ebenus ( Say, 1823 )

Edmonds, W. D., 2022, Taxonomic review of the North American dung beetle genus Boreocanthon Halffter, 1958 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae: Deltochilini), Insecta Mundi 2022 (952), pp. 1-65 : 20-26

Boreocanthon ebenus ( Say, 1823) . restored generic combination

Fig. 13 , 19–28

Ateuchus ebenus Say 1823: 208

Canthon ebenus (Say) (new combination per Melsheimer 1853: 53)

Boreocanthon ebenus (Say) (new combination per Halffter 1958: 209)

Canthon (Boreocanthon) ebenus (Say) (new combination per Howden 1966: 727)

Boreocanthon ebenus (Say) restored generic combination

Type. Neotype, here designated. Snow Entomological Collections, Biodiversity Institute, University of Kansas (see Comments below).

Type locality. Kansas, 10 mi NW Mullinville, here restricted (see Comments below).

Diagnosis. Head: Anterior portion of clypeus very finely roughened, weakly shiny, remainder of head densely covered by coarse granules on shagreen background. Strongly sexdentate, median clypeal teeth acute, separated by V-shaped emargination ( Fig. 20 ); lateral teeth acute. Paraocular notch deep, setting off strong, dentate anterior angle of paraocular area. Labio-gular fimbria broadly V-shaped, reaching mid-length of gula ( Fig. 25 ). Prothorax: Pronotum densely, coarsely granulate ( Fig. 13a , 19–20 ); granules on disk frequently joined into short, irregular chains, those on sides usually isolated. Lateral margin not at all explanate anteriorly; circumnotal ridge serrate posteriorly, not extending beyond posterior angle ( Fig. 13a ). Hypomeral carina absent ( Fig. 24 ) or rudimentary, Posterior view of pygidium. indicated only by angular projection of procoxal margin. Pterothorax: Pleurites granulate, granulation extending to sides of metaventrite ( Fig. 26 ); mesoventrite shagreened, weakly punctate laterally; middle of metaventrite with weakened granulation and scattered punctures on shagreen background. Elytra: Interstriae bearing strong field of isolated granules, anterior ends of 2 nd and 3 rd interstriae weakly raised, that of 1 st interstria depressed. Striae superficial, lacking discrete margins other than bordering granules; subhumeral (8 th) stria never carinulate, epipleural (9 th) stria sometimes indicated. Legs: Protibia (as in Fig. 16 ) abruptly widened, inner margin stepped at level of third (basal) tooth; inner apical angle prolonged as conical tooth. Protibial spur strongly curved and acute in both sexes. Hind femora with conspicuous row of long setae along anterior margin. Abdomen: Pygidium ( Fig. 27 ) sculptured as elytra, impressed basally on each side of raised midline, or as continuous transverse concavity. Ventrites usually more or less evenly granulate, granules becoming weaker medially on ventrites 1–5, uniform across ventrite 6. Genital capsule: Compressed apical portion of genital capsule triangular ( Fig. 22 ), lower apical angles in form of elongate, rounded lobes ( Fig. 23 ). General: Black, very rarely showing strong green or weak blue undertones. Length: 6.0–11.0 mm. Geographic distribution ( Fig. 28 ): Central United States generally west of the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains south of the 44 th parallel, with southern extension through Texas and New Mexico west to southern Arizona. Ecogeographic environment ( Fig. 2 ): Temperate Grasslands, Savannas and Shrublands, and Deserts and Xeric Shrubland biomes. Specimens examined: 1278.

Notes on the neotype. The male neotype conforms with the diagnosis above annotated as follows: Specimen exhibits moderate wear, especially notably rounded marginal teeth of head and protibiae. Left protarsus missing. Hypomeral carina suggested by angular projection of raised procoxal margin. First ventrite with scant, weak granulation, almost smooth; ventrites 2–5 with weak lateral granulation; 6 th ventrite completely granulate, posterior margin strongly emarginate medially. Genital capsule not extracted. Completely black at low magnification (<×5), very weak green undertones emerge under strong light and moderate magnification (×15). Length 10 mm. Neotype was chosen because of its appropriate collection locality (see discussion below). Label information is given below.

Collection localities.

MEXICO — CHIHUAHUA: Mpio. Juarez ● Samalayuca [Jun] ● Samalayuca, Laguna de Riataso [Aug].

UNITED STATES — ARIZONA: Cochise Co. ● Chiricahua Mountains, Horseshoe Canyon, 1.6 mi W Hwy 80 [Sep] ● 5.8 km SE Willcox , 32°13 ʹ 10 ʺ N 109°46 ʹ 51 W ʺ [Aug] . COLORADO: Denver Co. ● Denver [May-Aug] ; El Paso Co. ● Peyton, 5675 ft [Jul] ● Cheyenne Mt. , 6300 ft [Sep] ; Logan Co. ● Meringo [Aug] ; Morgan Co. ● 3mi N Orchard [Jun] ; Prowers Co. ● Lamar [Jun] ; Weld Co. ● Nunn [Sep] ● Roggen [Aug] ● 9 mi NE Roggen [May] . KANSAS: Barber Co. (no data) ; Cheyenne Co. ● 9 mi NNE Wheeler [May] ; Clark Co. ● 5 mi N Englewood [Jun] ; Clay Co. ● (no data) [Jun] ; Comanche Co. ● 4 mi NW Coldwater [Sep] ; Cowley Co. ● 10 mi SW Winfield ; Douglas Co. ● Lawrence, 900 ft ; Hamilton Co. ● Syracuse, 3500 ft [May] ; Jefferson Co. ● Medina ; Kiowa Co. ● 10 mi NW Mullinville [Jun] ● Belvidere [Jul] 5 mi N Greensburg [Apr, Jun] ; Meade Co. ● 13 mi S Meade [Jul] ; Morton Co. (no data) ; Reno Co. ● Medora [May-Jun] ; Sedgwick Co. ● (no data) ; Trego Co. (no data) ; Wallace Co. ● (no data) . MISSISSIPPI: Bolivar Co. ● 2 mi W Rosedale [May-Jun] . MISSOURI: Jasper Co. (no data) [Aug.] . NEBRASKA: Arthur Co. ● 4.5 mi N Arthur [May] ● Arapaho Prairie [Jun-Jul] ; Blaine Co. ● 10 mi SW Brewster [Jul] ● 3 mi N Brewster , 41.9721 N 99.8515 W ; Brown Co. ● Koshopah [Jun] ; Chase Co. ● Imperial ; Cherry Co. ● Merritt Dam [Aug] ● Ft. Niobrara [Aug] ● 2 mi W, 1 mi S Sparks [Jul] ● 42.1643 N 100.5299 W [Jun] ; Dakota Co. ● Sioux City [Jun] ; Dundy Co. ● Benkleman [May] ● Sanborn, 5 mi W Haigler , 40.06° N 102.02° W, 1010 m [Jun] ; Garfield Co. ● 21 km E Taylor , 41.8179° N 99.1075° W ; Hooker Co. ● 41.9815° N 101.1139° W [Jun] ; Keith Co. ● Cedar Point Biological Station [Jun] ; Loup Co. ● 41.8658 N 99.3773 W [Jul] ; McPherson Co. ● Tryon [Jun] ● Gudmundsen Sandhills Laboratory [Jul] ; Sheridan Co. ● 10-13 mi E Alliance [Jun] ; Thomas Co. ● Halsey [Aug] ● Nebraska National Forest, 1.3 km SSW Bessey Campground , 41.88937° N 100.30676° W [Sep] ● Nebraska National Forest , Whitetail Campground, 41.79413° N 100.27381° W [Sep] . NEW MEXICO: Bernalillo Co. ● Albuquerque [Apr, Jun] ; Catron Co. ● Luna ; Chaves Co. ● 5.5 km SW Elkins [Jul] ● 38 mi E Roswell, Mescalero Sand Dunes [Jul] ; Cibola Co. ● Laguna [Jul] ; Colfax Co. ● 6.3 mi E Springer, Canadian River [Jun] ; Doña Ana Co. ● Jornada Experimental Range, 15 mi N Las Cruces [Jul, Sep] ● Las Cruces [Jul] ● Rincon ● 8 mi W Las Cruces [Jul] ; Eddy Co. ● 16 mi E Loving, Los Medanos [Aug] ● near Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, 32°23.6 ʹ N 103°46.1° ʹ W [Jun] ; Harding Co. ● 33.5 km SE Gallegos , 1200 m [Apr] ; Lea Co. ● 3 mi E Jal [Jun] ● 32°22.8 ʹ N 103°43.3 ʹ W [Jul] ; Otero Co. Newman, 4000 ft [May] ; Quay Co. ● Tucumcari [Sep] ● 7 mi SW Logan [Jun] ● Glenrio [Jul] ● 3 mi N San Jon ; Roosevelt Co. ● Oasis State Park [Jul] ● Portales , 34.12371° -103.58029° [Jul] ● 8 mi E Portales, ENMU Natural History Preserve [May-Jul, Oct] ● 14 mi SW Portales ; Sandoval Co. ● Jemez Pueblo [Jul] ● San Ysidro [Jun] ; San Miguel Co. ● Las Vegas [Jul] ; Sierra Co. ● Elephant Butte Lake State Park [Jul] ; Socorro Co. ● 19km W Bernardo, 34.401° N 107.028° W ● 18 km SE Bernardo ● Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, Saltbush [Jun] ● Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, San Lorenzo [Jun] ● Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, Black Butte [Jun] ● Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, 34.311° N 106.678° W [Jun, Aug] ; Union Co. ● 18 mi W and 4 mi S Clayton (Snyder Ranch) [Aug] . OKLAHOMA: Cimarron Co. ● Boise City [Jul] ; Cleveland Co. ● Norman [Apr] ● Hwy 62 at South Canadian River [Apr] ; Cotton Co. ● Hwy 281 at Red River [Apr] ; Jefferson Co. ● Hwy 79 at Red River [Apr] ● Ryan [Jul] ; Kingfisher Co. ● Dover [Jul] ; Love Co. Hwy I-35 at Red River [Apr] ; Marshall Co. ● 5 mi N Willis [Jun] ; McCurtain Co. ● Red River sand bars [Jul] ; Payne Co. ● (no data) [May] ; Woods Co. ● Little Sahara State Park , 2 mi S Waynoka [May-Jun] ; Woodward Co. ● Woodward [Jul] . SOUTH DAKOTA: Bennett Co. ● 10 mi E Martin. Lacreek National Wildlife Refuge [May] ; Perkins Co. ● Grand River National Grassland [Jul] . TEXAS: Anderson Co. ● Engeling Wildlife Management Area [Jul-Aug] ● 25 mi NW Palestine [Apr] ; Angelina Co. ● 10 mi N Zavalla [May] ; Atascosa Co. ● 8 mi NW Poteet [Apr-May] ● 5 mi SW Somerset (Bexar Co.) [Mar] ; Bastrop Co. ● 8.6 km N Bastrop, Camp Swift ● 10 mi N Bastrop [Sep] ; Bexar Co. ● San Antonio [Oct] ● 10 mi W San Antonio [Oct] ● Hwy 281, 6 mi S Loop 1604 [Oct] ● Applewhite Rd. at Loop 1604 [Nov] ; Brazos Co. ● College Station [Apr, Sep] ; Bosque Co. ● 2 mi SE Clifton ; Briscoe Co. ● Quitaque [Jun] ; Brooks Co. ● 9 mi S Falfurrias [Jul] ; Burleson Co. ● 2 mi N junction Hwy 21 and FM 908 [Feb-Mar] ; ● 4 mi W Cooks Point [Mar] ; Callahan Co. ● Baird [Apr] ; Cameron Co. ● San Benito [Jul] ● 14 mi E Rio Hondo [Oct] ; Colorado Co. ● Columbus ; Comal Co. ● Bulverde [Apr] ; Comanche Co. ● Comanche [Jun-Jul] ; Crane Co. ● Junction routes 1053 and 1233, 31°29 ʹ N 102°39 ʹ W [Jul] ; Crosby Co. ● White River Lake [May] ; Dallas Co. ● Dallas [May] ; Dickens Co. ● 2 mi SW Dickens [Oct] ● 10 mi NE Dickens [Aug-Sep] ; Dimmit Co. ● 4 mi W Carrizo Springs [Sep] ● 8 mi W Artesia Wells ( LaSalle Co. ), Chaparral State Wildlife Management Area [Mar] ; El Paso Co. ● El Paso [Jun] ; Freestone Co. ● Old Spring Seat Church, near Donie [May] ; Gaines Co. ● 10 mi SW Seagraves ; Gillespie Co. ● 1 mi S Fredricksburg [Oct] ; Grimes Co. ● Lamb Spring [Mar] ; Hall Co. ● 6 mi SE Turkey [May-Jul] ; Hardin Co. ● 3 mi W Silsbee, Sandylands Preserve , 30°20 ʹ 57 ʺ N 94°14 ʹ 16 ʺ W [Jun] ; Hardeman Co. ● 20 mi N Goodlett, Farm Road 680 at Red River [Aug] ; Henderson Co. ● Athens, Sand Flats Cemetery [Apr] ; Hidalgo Co. ● Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge [Apr] ● 7-10 mi N Linn [Apr] ; Karnes Co. Ecleto Metz Ranch [Mar]; Kenedy Co. ● Turcotte Ranch, 2 mi S Sarita [May] ● Armstrong [Mar-Apr] ● 3 and 5 mi S Sarita [Jun, Sep-Oct] ; ● 20 mi N Raymondville [Apr] ● Kenedy Ranch, San Pedro Camp, 26°57 ʹ 03.9 ʺ N 97°39 ʹ 22.2 ʺ W [Apr] ; ● 20 mi SW Riviera [Nov] ● Norias [Oct] ; Leon Co. ● 1.5 mi N Centerville [Jun] ; Lipscomb Co. ● Higgins [Jun] ; Live Oak Co. ● Mestena Ranch, 12 mi S George West [May] ● 10 mi S George West [Aug] ; Lubbock Co. ● Lubbock [Apr] ; Mason Co. ● Double Helix Ranch, 30.87053 -99.05167 ; McColloch Co. ● 2 mi SE Brady [Sep] ; Mills Co. (no data) ; Montague Co. ● 3 mi N Forestburg [Apr] ● Hwy 81 at Red River [Apr] Parker Co. ● Dennis [Jul] ; Randall Co. ● Canyon [Jul] ; Refugio Co. ● Austwell [May] ; Robertson Co. ● Hearne [Apr] ; Starr Co. ● 2 mi NE La Gloria [May] ; Terry Co. ● Brownfield [Jul] ; Travis Co. ● Austin [Oct] ; Val Verde Co. ● Del Rio , 955 ft [Jun] ; Ward Co. ● Wickett [Jun] ● 9.4 km ENE Monahans, 31°37 ʹ 11 ʺ N 102°47 ʹ 52 ʺ W [May] ● Monahans [May, Jul] ● Monahans Sandhills State Park , 31.639357° -102.829678°, 825 m [Apr - Jul] ; Washington Co. ● Hwy 105, 8 mi SW Brazos River [Apr] ; Wichita Co. ● 2 mi ENE Burkburnett, US Hwy 281/I-44 at Red River [Jun] ; Webb Co. ● Laredo [Jul] ; Willacy Co. Lyford [Jul] ● Point Mansfield (May) ; Wilson Co. ● Floresville [Jul] ; Winkler Co. ● Co. Rd. 404, 17 mi E Hwy 18, 31.792° N 102.791° W ● 11 mi NE Kermit , 3200 ft [Sep] . WYOMING: Goshen Co. ● Lingle [Jul] ; Laramie Co. ● Cheyenne ; Platte Co. ● Uva [Jul] .

Comments. Boreocanthon ebenus is regarded here as sister to B. depressipennis (q.v.). It is a common, large species easily confused with B. praticola , from which it differs in a number of ways, most obviously by its basally impressed pygidium. The two species are broadly sympatric and sometimes collected together, in prairie dog colonies, for example. However, B. ebenus is clearly closely associated with sand dunes and other habitats with exposed, very sandy substrate ( Brown 1927; Nealis 1977; Fincher et al. 1986). Collection locations are very often places where vegetated sand dune habitat is common; indeed, casual searching using Google Earth with precise GPS data often pinpoints places clearly having sand dune or similar habitat. Schoenly (1983) collected B. ebenus from horse/cattle dung-baited pitfalls in the red sandy hills just east of the city of El Paso, where B. halffteri also occurs.

Blatchley (1910) included B. ebenus in his key to Indiana Canthon but cited no state localities, stating only that it “… is known from Maine and Pennsylvania to Kansas and Texas”. I have not seen Indiana specimens. The Leng (1920) citation of B. ebenus from Maine is a misidentification and should have read Canthon vigilans LeConte ( Majka et al. 2011.) While I have seen Mexican specimens only from near Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, there can be little doubt that B. ebenus reaches localities in the far north of Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon and Coahuila along the Rio Grande as some collection localities literally lie on the northern bank of the river within flight distance to Mexican soil along the southern bank and beyond. Townsend (1902) reported it from Hidalgo Co., Texas, and I have seen specimens from several other Texas counties along the Rio Grande from the Gulf coast to Del Rio. Boreocanthon ebenus was unsuccessfully introduced into Puerto Rico in early 1920s to control the horn fly, Haematobia irritans (L.) ( Halffter and Matthews 1966; see also Wolcott 1922).

My conjecture is that the dispersal of B. ebenus has been facilitated by sandy habitats along riverways, which provide corridors for expansion through otherwise less hospitable terrain. Material I have seen often associates with major river drainages: lower Rio Grande, Pecos River, Arkansas River, Red River, the Platte River and its major tributaries in the Great Plains. Such may explain the occurrence of this species as far east as the Mississippi River. I have seen five specimens from the Paul Lago collection from Bolivar County , Mississippi (2 mi W Rosedale), a site literally on the sand flats of east bank of the Mississippi River at its confluence with the Arkansas River. Curiously, B. depressipennis has apparently also reaches the Mississippi River, about 200 air miles south of Rosedale near Baton Rouge, Louisiana (See Comments for that species.)

On the spelling of ebenus. There has been confusion regarding the spelling of the specific name (epithet) of this species name. Say (1823) christened his species Ateuchus ebeneus , using a Latin adjective meaning made of ebony wood, in obvious reference to this beetle’s deep black color. Melsheimer’s (1853) catalogue, which was edited by J. L. LeConte and S. S. Haldeman, listed it by the name Canthon ebenus (Say) , replacing the adjective form (ebeneus) with the noun (ebenus), with no explanation for the change in spelling. Melsheimer’s action must be regarded as an incorrect subsequent spelling ( ICZN 1999, Article 33.3), whether made in simple error or as a deliberate change. That the change was, indeed, an editorial decision by LeConte is strongly suggested by the fact that, six years later, in his magnificent compilation of Say’s writings, he modified Say’s original text of the description of ebenus (1859b, p. 134) to read “3. A. ebeneus [ ebenus ].” LeConte utilized brackets to correct what he regarded (or perhaps knew to be) typographical errors: “Typographical errors in the original memoirs have been corrected … the corrections have been placed in brackets” (1859a, p. vi of his Preface). LeConte’s action only perpetuated the error in the Melsheimer catalogue, to which he continued to refer in later writings ( LeConte 1858, 1859c). However, in the case of ebenus , the Melsheimer/LeConte spelling has arguably been, since its inception, in prevailing usage and always attributed to the publication of the original spelling and, therefore, in accordance with ICZN Article 33.3.1, it can be deemed to be the correct original spelling. That it has been the prevailing spelling for over 150 years is evidenced by the following comparison (not to be regarded as exhaustive, but, rather, illustrative of usage over time in papers of varying length and scope): spelling as ebenus ( LeConte 1858, 1859a, 1859b; Horn 1870; Ulke 1874; Blanchard 1885; Wickham 1902; Townsend 1902; Blatchley 1910; Gillett 1911; Leng 1920; Dawson 1922; Brown 1927; Robinson 1948; Halffter 1958; Vulcano and Pereira 1964; Halffter and Martínez 1977; Nealis 1977; Schoenly 1983; Howden and Scholtz 1986; Fincher et al. 1986; Kohlmann and Halffter 1990; Lobo 2000; Medina et al. 2003; Riley and Wolfe 2003; Krajcik 2006; Ratcliffe and Paulsen 2008; Edmonds 2018); spelling as ebeneus ( Dejean 1833; Harold 1868; Harold 1869; Schmidt 1922 (attributed to LeConte); Balthasar 1939; Blackwelder 1944 (as ebeneum); Krell 2010). In accordance with Article 33.3.1 of the ICZN (1999), I here regard ebenus as the correct original spelling of Ateuchus ebeneus Say, 1823 , and so use the name Boreocanthon ebenus (Say) as the valid name of this species.

On designation of neotype. In explicit regard to designating a neotype for Ateuchus ebenus Say, 1823 , the following particulars apply to the provisions set forth in Article 75.3 of the ICZN (1999):

1) 75.3.1—This designation of a neotype is made for the express purpose of clarifying the identity and type locality of Ateuchus ebenus Say, 1823 , here Boreocanthon ebenus ( Say, 1823) , the originally designated type species of the genus Boreocanthon Halffter, 1958 . In my opinion, lack of a name-bearing specimen for a type species of a genus constitutes an exceptional need for designation of a neotype in the context of Article 75.3. Additionally, the subject species is a close relative of, and often confused with the sympatric species Boreocanthon praticola ( LeConte, 1859c) . A neotype, as name-bearing type specimen, will, therefore, clarify and stabilize the meaning of the species-name as well as the genus-name Boreocanthon .

2) 75.3.2—Characters that differentiate Ateuchus ebenus (now Boreocanthon ebenus ) from its congeners are set forth in the key and species treatments presented in this paper.

3) 75.3.3—The pinned specimen here designated as neotype bears the following five labels attached on the same pin: (1) USA Kansas: Kiowa Co., 10 mi NW Mullinville, 8 Jun 1996, G. Salsbury, ex: prairie dog dung; (2) Canthon ebeneus (Say) det. G. Salsbury 2000; (3) {barcode} SM0349138, KUNHM-ENT; (4) Boreocanthon ebenus ( Say, 1823) , Det WDEdmonds ’22; (5) NEOTYPE, Ateuchus ebenus Say 1823 (= Boreocanthon ebenus [Say]) Designated by W.D. Edmonds 2022. (The neotype label is printed in black ink on white with “ NEOTYPE ” in red.)

4) 75.3.4—It is general knowledge ( Weiss and Ziegler 1931; Mawdsley 1993) that most of the original collections by Thomas Say were lost or destroyed. No specimens attributable to A. ebenus are present in the surviving collection of Say material at the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard University, nor in the Melsheimer, Harris or LeConte collections there (Crystal Maier, pers. comm.). Moreover, no specimens attributable to Say in the collections of his foreign correspondents have been discovered in European museums in recent years (Mario Cupello, Fernando Vaz-de-Mello, Stéphane Boucher, pers. comm.). I harbor little doubt that Say’s original type specimen(s) no longer exists.

5) 75.3.5—The specimen here designated as neotype is fully consistent with the original and subsequent descriptions of Ateuchus ebenus and subsequent names: Canthon ebenus and Boreocanthon ebenus .

6) 75.3.6—Say’s original description (1823) is based on specimen(s) collected during his 1819–1820 trip from St. Louis to the Rocky Mountains as zoologist to the US Army scientific exploration party led by Major S. H. Long. The stated type locality is “ Missouri,” but at the time of Say’s western travels in June 1819 – October 1820 ( Barber 1928), his location must have referred to the Missouri Territory, not the future state of Missouri, which was not organized until 1821. Indeed, in some of his letters to colleagues during the journey, Say explicitly gives his location as “ Missouri Terry ” in the dateline ( Weiss and Ziegler 1931). So, the precise collection site for his species could well have been anywhere along the roughly 2000-mile route he took from St. Louis along the Missouri River to Council Bluffs, thence along the Platte and South Platte Rivers to the foot of the Rocky Mountains, thence along the Arkansas River to Fort Smith and Cape Girardeau, and thence up the Mississippi to St. Louis — that is, entirely through the present states of Missouri, Nebraska, Colorado, Kansas and northwestern Arkansas. But given the distribution of B. ebenus as now understood ( Fig. 28 ) it is reasonable to assume that the original type locality was somewhere on those sections of the party’s route along the Platte and South Platte Rivers, in the present region of Denver and Colorado Springs, and along the Arkansas River from, in modern terms, Colorado through Kansas into Oklahoma and Arkansas. All these sections pass through regions where B. ebenus is common and where Say presumably collected. It is unlikely that Say collected this species in the present day state of Missouri, where it is unknown to me save for the far southwest corner of the state (Jasper Co.) Accordingly, from available material I have selected a specimen collected from the following location, hereby determined, per ICZN Article 76.3, to be the type locality of Ateuchus ebenus Say : Kansas, Kiowa County, 10 mi NW Mullinville. This location places the type locality in grassland habitat adjacent to the Arkansas River (per Google Earth, Image Landsat/Copernicus, accessed February 1, 2022), and is very near the location where Say’s exploration detachment, led by Captain John Bell, made camp on August 8, 1820 (Fuller and Hafen 1973: 218, map).

7) 75.3.7—The here designated neotype of Ateuchus ebenus Say has been deposited in the collection of the Snow Entomological Collections, Biodiversity Institute, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas USA.

Figures

Figure 28. Approximate distributions of Boreocanthon ebenus (Say) and B. depressipennis (LeConte)

Figures 11–18. Boreocanthon depressipennis (LeConte). 11) Dorsal habitus (inset magnifies elytral sculpturing). 12) Oblique ventral view of meso- and metaventrites. 13) Comparison of posterolateral margin of pronotum; asterisks mark posterolateral angle of pronotum; arrows mark posterior extension of circumnotal ridge in B. depressipennis. a) Boreocanthon ebenus. b) Boreocanthon depressipennis. 14) Posterior view of pygidium. 15) Ventral view of mentum and gula. 16) Anterior view of protibia (arrow indicates apical tooth). 17) Apical view of parameres. 18) Lateral view of genital capsule.

Figures 19–27. Boreocanthon ebenus (Say).19) Habitus, anterolateral view; 20) same, dorsal view.21) Apical view of female abdomen (pyg = pygidium; arrow indicates apices of paraprocts; asterisk indicates extended marginal flange of pygidial margin). 22) Lateral view of genital capsule. 23) Apical view of parameres. 24) Ventral view left hypomeron. 25) Ventral view of gula and submentum. 26) Oblique ventral view of meso- and metaventrites. 27)

Figures 1–2. 1) Approximate corporate distribution of the genus Boreocanthon. 2) Generalized depiction of vegetation biomes of the United States (Biome key in box; See Materials and Methods for explanation).