Fossil History of Curculionoidea (Coleoptera) from the Paleogene

First Record of the Genus Cartorhynchites Voss, 1958 (Coleoptera: Rhynchitidae) from Eocene Baltic Amber with a List of Fossil Tooth-Nosed Snout Weevils

A new species of the genus Cartorhynchites (Rhynchitini, Rhynchitina) is described from Baltic amber. Cartorhynchites groehni Legalov, Bukejs et Alekseev sp. n. differs from C. struvei Zherikhin, 1992 from the Miocene of Germany in its smaller body size (2.6 mm), strongly convex eyes, narrower pronotum and wide elytra, and dark brown legs. A new species is studied and illustrated in detail using X-ray micro-computed tomography (μCT). It is the earliest fossil record of subtribe Rhynchitina. A list of fossil Rhynchitidae was compiled. A key to species of Rhynchitidae in Baltic amber was given. Fossil finds of the family Rhynchitidae were discussed. The assumption was made that the Recent distribution range of the genus Cartorhynchites is within the range of its host plant of the genus Symplocos. Probably, a new Eocene species developed on Symplocos kowalewskii, and the Oligocene C. struvei was associated with Symplocos myosotis (Unger).

Were Arenga Palms (Arecaceae) Present in the Eocene? A Review of the Genus Succinometrioxena Legalov, 2012

It has been suggested that palms of the genus Arenga (Arecales: Arecaceae) or forms close to it were distributed in the Eocene of North America and Europe. Records of Metrioxenini (Belidae), which are monophages on these palms, confirm this assumption. A new species, Succinometrioxena andrushchenkoi Legalov, sp. n. from Baltic amber is described. The new species differs from S. poinari Legalov, 2012 in the smaller body sizes, elytral punctation larger than the distances between them, and a rostrum weakly curved in females. It is distinguished from S. bachofeni Legalov, 2013 and S. attenuata Legalov et Poinar, 2020 by the forehead lacking horn-like tubercles on either side of the eyes. A description of male of S. poinari was herein compiled for the first time. A list and key to fossil Metrioxenini were given. The modern and fossil distribution of the tribe Metrioxenini and Arenga palms was shown.

From Abundance to Extinction: Evolutionary History of European Aedemonini (Curculionidae) with a Description of the First Representative from Rovno Amber

Fossil weevils of the subfamily Molytinae are currently represented by 103 species in 42 genera from 14 tribes. Fossil records of the tribe Aedemonini are known from the Eocene of Europe. This tribe makes up 22% of the London Clay weevil specimens identified to the genus level and 16% of the Curculionidae genera. At present, the distribution of this tribe is mainly paleotropical, but it was very prominent in the paratropical biota of the London Clay in the early Eocene, and it was still represented in the biota of the amber forests of Europe that retained some tropical elements in the Priabonian. A new species, Electrorhinus vlaskini n. sp., from the tribe Aedemonini of the subfamily Molytinae, is described from Rovno amber. It differs from E. friedhelmi in the smaller body size, finely faceted eyes, a coarser rugose pronotum, and sparser scales on the body. A list of the fossil Molytinae is compiled. This is the first record of a weevil of the subfamily Molytinae in Rovno amber, and the second finding of a representative of the genus Electrorhinus in the late Eocene and the third record of a species of Aedemonini preserved as a fossil. A key to European species of Molytinae with a rostral channel from Europe is given.

Fossil History of Ambrosia Beetles (Coleoptera; Platypodidae) with Description of a New Genus from Dominican Amber

The fossil record of ambrosia beetles is summarized and a new genus and species in the subfamily Mecopelminae, Gongyloceria dominicana gen. et sp. nov. is described. The new genus differs from the extant genus Mecopelmus Blackman, 1944, possessing weakly elongated tarsi, finely faceted eyes, a scape not reaching the posterior margin of the eye, coarsely sculptured pronotum and elytra, and a larger body size. It is the first Miocene record of the Mecopelminae. The genus Xyleborites Wickham, 1913, placem. n. is transferred from the Scolytidae to the Platypodidae. A list of the fossil Platypodidae, including a key to the subfamilies and tribes of ambrosia beetles, is presented. Xyleborites longipennis Wickham, 1913 and Gongyloceria dominicana sp. nov. may have been related to Paullinieae recorded from the late Eocene and the early Miocene of North and Central America. Distribution maps with fossil records for ambrosia beetles are included.

Diversity of Auger Beetles (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) in the Mid-Cretaceous Forests with Description of Seven New Species

The diversity and abundance of auger beetles were compared with ecologically similar families of other beetles. It was shown that the ecological niche in dead wood, which in the Paleogene belonged to bark and ambrosia beetles, was occupied by Bostrichidae in the Mesozoic. Seven new species, Poinarinius aristovi sp. nov., P. antonkozlovi sp. nov., P. lesnei sp. nov., P. perkovskyi sp. nov., P. zahradniki sp. nov., P. borowskii sp. nov., and P. cretaceus sp. nov. from the subfamily Alitrepaninae of the family Bostrichidae are described from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber. The key to the species of the genus Poinarinius Legalov, 2018 is given. The new synonym, Alitrepanum Peng, Jiang, Engel & Wang, 2022, syn. nov. to Poinarinius, was established. A list of the fossil Bostrichidae was compiled.

A new species of the genus Dorytomus Germar, 1817 (Coleoptera, Curculionidae) from Rovno amber

A new species, Dorytomus mikhailovi sp. n., from late Eocene Rovno amber is described and illustrated. The new species is similar to D. groehni Bukejs et Legalov, 2019 from Baltic amber but differs in the shorter rostrum, dorsum covered with denser decumbent hairs and erect to semierect scale-like setae, and smaller body sizes. It is distinguished from D. bukejsi Legalov, 2020 from Baltic amber by the densely punctate pronotum, longer rostrum and wide elytral interstriae. The new species differs from D. vlaskini Legalov et al., 2019 from Rovno amber by the elytral interstriae covered with decumbent hairs and erect to semierect scale-like setae, shorter rostrum and coarsely punctuate pronotum. It is the first named curculionid beetle from the Olevsk amber locality, and the eleventh amber species reported from the Zhitomyr region. The presence of seven species of Dorytomus suggests a rather high diversity of Salicaceae in the late Eocene amber forests of Europe. It corresponds well with other principal Holarctic species in European amber biotas.

The Fossil Record of Elateridae (Coleoptera: Elateroidea): Described Species, Current Problems and Future Prospects

The Elateridae (click-beetles) are the largest family in Elateroidea; however, their relationships, systematics and classification remain unclear. Our understanding of the origin, evolution, palaeodiversity and palaeobiogeography of Elateridae, as well as reconstruction of a reliable time-calibrated phylogeny for the group, are hampered by the lack of detailed knowledge of their fossil record. In this study, we summarize the current knowledge on all described fossil species in Elateridae, including their type material, geographic origin, age, bibliography and remarks on their systematic placement. Altogether, 261 fossil species classified in 99 genera and nine subfamilies are currently listed in this family. The Mesozoic click-beetle diversity includes 143 species, with most of them described from the Jurassic Karatau, and 118 described species are known from the Cenozoic deposits, mainly from the Eocene North American Florissant Formation and European Baltic amber. Available data on the described past diversity of Elateridae suggest that almost all fossil lineages in this group are in urgent need of revision and numerous Mesozoic species might belong to different families. Our study is intended to serve as a comprehensive basis for all subsequent research focused on the click-beetle fossil record.

Revised checklist of weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionoidea excluding Scolytidae and Platypodidae) from Siberia and the Russian Far East

Abstract

Currently, 1464 species of Curculionid beetles (Nemonychydae – 1, Anthribidae – 76, Rhynchitidae – 78, Attelabidae – 28, Brentidae – 131 and Curculionidae – 1150) are recorded from Siberia and the Russian Far East. Forty species are found in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, 84 species in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, 313 species in Tyumen Oblast, 182 species in Chelyabinsk Oblast, 129 species in Kurgan Oblast, 172 species in Omsk Oblast, 299 species in Tomsk Oblast, 439 species in Novosibirsk Oblast, 324 species in Kemerovo Oblast, 356 species in Altay Krai, 296 species in Altai Republic, 182 species in Krasnoyarsk Krai, 114 species in Republic of Khakassia, 244 species in Tyva Republic, 283 species in Irkutsk Oblast, 239 species in Buryatiya Republic, 286 species in Zabaikalskii Krai, 153 species in Sakha (Yakutia) Republic, 74 species in Far East: Kamchatka Oblast, 43 species in Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, 105 species in Magadan Oblast, 325 species in Amur Oblast, 312 species in Khabarovsk Krai, 599 species in Primorsky Krai, 225 species in Sakhalin Is. and 218 species in Kuriles Isl. 112 species are excluded from the fauna of Siberia and the Russian Far East. New synonyms, Trichosmobodes L. Arnoldi, 1975, syn. nov. to Holomrasus Reitter, 1912, Notaris illibata Faust, 1882, syn. nov. to N. acridulus (Linnaeus, 1758), Larinus ruber Motschulsky, 1845, syn. nov. to L. impressus Gebler, 1829, Lixus maculatus Roelofs, 1873, syn. nov. to L. fasciculatus Boheman, 1835, Stephanocleonus jakovlevi Faust, 1893, syn. nov. and S. jenisseicus Ter-Minassian, 1978, syn. nov. to S. leucopterus (Fischer von Waldheim, 1823), Curculio budjumkanensis Legalov, 2007, syn. nov. to C. betulae (Stephens, 1831), Curculio parasiticus Morimoto, 1962, syn. nov. to Archarius salicivorus (Paykull, 1792), Otiorhynchus buchtarmensis Bajtenov, 1977, syn. nov. and O. rhododendroni Bajtenov, 1977, syn. nov. to O. grandineus Germar, 1823, O. perplexus Gyllenhal, 1834, syn. nov. to O. obscurus Gyllenhal, 1834, Tanymecus argentatus Gyllenhal, 1840, syn. nov. to Megamecus bidentatus (Gebler, 1829), comb. nov. are established.