Syntelia
Syntelia is the only genus of the family Synteliidae within the beetle suborder Polyphaga. To date, seven species are described, with two other species of the genus known, but currently are still undescribed.
- 5.1 Notes and references
- 5.2 Literature
Features
Beetle
The beetles have a body length of 10 to 35 millimeters. Their strong convex body is elongate and more or less parallel side edges. He is black, matt to slightly glossy, and has a slight blue-green metallic luster in some species. The head is two-thirds as wide as the pronotum, the mouthparts are directed forward or slightly down. The head can not be confiscated under the pronotum. Its surface is usually weak point-like structure, the compound eyes are large and oval. The eleven-membered probes are short, easy to steer and knelt in under a small ledge between compound eyes and the basis of the mandibles. At rest, the sensor can be bent under the head where the scape and pedicel fit into a distinct pit. The last three antennal segments form a large, hairy leg sensor. The mandibles are very elongated and are very prominent. Your mesial margin is blade-shaped and has three to four teeth. The maxilla has a very hairy galea and lacinia, the latter lacks an apical tooth. The Maxillarpalpen are four members, the labial palps tripartite.
The prothorax is free to move and not closely connected with the rest of the thorax. The pronotum is more or less trapezoidal and in the first third widest. Its interface is designed differently, but weak point-like structure in most species. The visible part of the tag ( scutellum ) is medium in size and almost triangular in shape to small and finger-like. The elytra are long, flat on the back, curved at the sides. Your tip is truncated, which, however, only the telson, so the Tergum of the seventh abdominal segment remains visible. The elytra bear 3 to 10 different depths, irregular lines of pits or dots. The membranous wings ( alae ) are formed. The tarsi of all three pairs of legs are five-membered.
The abdomen has five visible, easy point-like structured sternites (III to VII ) and a visible heavily dotted Tergum (VII). The only slightly sclerotized eighth abdominal segment is together with the genitals completely invaginated. The stigmas are only from the first operational by the sixth abdominal segment, that of the seventh to eighth are stunted. All terga are well sclerotized, the seventh but stronger than the others.
Preimaginal stages
The preimaginal stages are known only from Syntelia histeroides, the eggs are completely unknown. As with the Stutz beetles ( Histeridae ) there are only two larval stages. The larvae have an elongated, straight, slightly flattened body with parallel side edges. The body is only weakly sclerotized and pigmented. The heavily sclerotized head is extended and the mouthparts are directed forward. The sensors are tripartite and half as long as the head is wide. The cut legs are five-membered. Of the rear body 10 has segments of and is more than twice as long as the thorax. Pupation takes place in a free doll that has functional spiracles on segments I or II to VI.
Distribution and habitat
The genus is very disjoint one hand with five species in the mountain regions of East Asia, with a spread in India, Burma and China, Japan and the Russian Far East, on the other hand described by two and two undescribed species in Central America with a distribution in Mexico and Guatemala before.
The beetles colonize mainly medium high to high subtropical to tropical Bergslagen 1500-3900 meters above sea level. The most heavily studied type Syntelia histeroides also occurs at lower altitudes, where the imagines and larvae under moist bark of rotting trees, such as Phellodendron were found sachalinense.
Way of life
The larvae of Syntelia histeroides and presumably the imagos are predators of other insects living under bark. The pupate under the bark, but without Puppenwiege. At least from several species is known a way of life under bark. In the summer you will find the beetles also leaking sap of oaks and elms. However Syntelia westwoodi colonized the high desert areas in the southern Mexican central plateau of 1700-3000 meters above sea level, where the imagos were found in damp, rotting inside of dead large columnar cacti. There they prey on fly larvae.
Taxonomy and systematics
Syntelia is in a sister relation to the Stutz beetles ( Histeridae ), which was confirmed both by features of larvae and adults as well as by molecular genetic studies. The putative autapomorphies of Syntelia include, among others, the lack of seam on Epistoma, the coalescence of the labrum with the front of the head and the outside of the closed mines in the hips ( coxae ) of the front legs.
The following types are covered above:
- Syntelia Davidis Fairmaire, 1889
- Syntelia Mazuri Zhou, 2003
- Syntelia sinica Zhou, 2003
- Syntelia indica Westwood, 1864
- Syntelia histeroides Lewis, 1882
- Syntelia mexicana Westwood, 1864
- Syntelia westwoodi Salle, 1873