Lilia A. Akhmetova

Revision of the obligate mushroom‐feeding African “dung beetle” genus Coptorhina Hope (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae)

The African genus Coptorhina Hope is revised. Nine new synonymies are established which reduces the number of valid names from 15 to six. One new species is also described. The name changes are the following: C. subaenea Janssens, C. bicolor Ancey, C. pygmaea Balthasar and C. saganicola Müller are considered junior synonyms of C. nitidipennis Boheman; C. africana Hope, C. vicina Péringuey, C. obtusicornis Boheman, C. punctata Ferreira and C. optata Péringuey are considered junior synonyms of C. klugii Hope. The new species, C. excavata sp. n., is described from southern Africa. A key to the species and notes on biology are given.

A review of the scarab beetle tribe Aphodiini (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae) of the fauna of Russia

An annotated list of 183 species of the dung-beetle tribe Aphodiini of the Russian fauna is given. The highest species diversity is characteristic of the southern mountainous regions of the country, the richest local faunas being known from the Lower Volga area. The greatest numbers of species are known from the steppe and broadleaved forest zones and from the nemoral types of altitudinal zonation of vegetation. The bulk of the fauna is formed by the species with wide ranges; 111 species occur in two or more landscape zones or altitudinal zonation types. Six groups of faunistically similar zoogeographic provinces are distinguished within the territory of Russia.

Revision of the mainland species of the Neotropical genus Aegidium Westwood (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Orphninae)

ABSTRACT The Orphninae genus Aegidium Westwood is revised from mainland South and Central America. Ten new species are described: Aegidium angustum sp. nov., Aegidium bordoni sp. nov., Aegidium gilli sp. nov., Aegidium howdeni sp. nov., Aegidium onorei sp. nov., Aegidium peresfilhoi sp. nov., Aegidium peruanum sp. nov., Aegidium rafaeli sp. nov., Aegidium sinuatum sp. nov. and Aegidium varians sp. nov. The lectotype of Aegidium columbianum Westwood is designated. Keys, descriptions, illustrations of habitus and male genitalia, and distributional record maps are given for all species.

A contribution to the study of the Lower Volga center of scarab beetle diversity in Russia: checklist of the tribe Aphodiini (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae) of Dosang environs

Abstract The field sampling of the Aphodiini scarab beetles in Dosang environs (Astrakhan Province, European Russia) in 2006–2012 resulted in the collection of 44 species. All but one of them belong to Aphodius Hellwig (sensu lato). This is apparently the richest recorded local Aphodiini fauna in Russia. The high Aphodiini diversity in the area can be explained by the long vegetative season with high effective heat sum, large livestock providing abundant food resources throughout the year, and location in the transition belt between Volga-Akhtuba Floodplain and Desert floristic districts. The core fauna consists of mesophilous species widely distributed in the Palearctic region and confined to the intrazonal habitats. Other species have ranges mostly limited to the steppe, semidesert, and desert zones.

A review of scarabs of the subgenus Plagiogonus Mulsant, genus Aphodius Illiger (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae), of the fauna of Russia and neighboring countries

A review of the scarab subgenus Plagiogonus Mulsant, genus Aphodius Illiger, of the fauna of Russia and adjacent countries is given, with a key to the species and data on their distribution. Two species names, Aphodius reitteri D. Koshantschikow, 1894 and A. burgaltaicus Csiki, 1901, are restored from synonyms. Two new synonymies are established: A. chan Endrödi, 1967 = A. peregii Endrödi, 1983, syn. n.; A. reitteri D. Koshantschikow, 1894 = A. kricheldorffi W. Koschantschikov, 1910, syn. n. Neotype of A. culminarius Reitter, 1900 and lectotype of A. burgaltaicus are designated, and redescriptions of these species are given. A secondary sex character of Plagiogonus is found.

On the synonymy of two species names of the genus Aphodius Ill. (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae) described by S. M. Iablokoff-Khnzorian

Based on examination of the type material, names of two Aphodius species are placed in synonyms: A. edgardi Solsky, 1876 = A. sartus Iablokoff-Khnzorian, 1971, syn. n.; and A. putridus Geoffroy, 1785 = A. avetissiani Iablokoff-Khnzorian, 1964, syn. n.

Description of the third-instar larva of Aphodius bimaculatus (Laxmann) (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae)

The third-instar larva of Aphodius bimaculatus (Laxmann) is described from the material collected in Belarus. The larva differs from other species of the subgenus Acrossus in the convex clypeus with a complex structure and in the coloration of the head.

A new species of the genus Madecorphnus (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Orphninae) from Madagascar

Madagascar has a unique and diverse Orphninae (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) fauna with four genera and 39 described species (Paulian 1977, Frolov et al. 2016). Half of these species belong to the genus Madecorphnus Paulian, 1992 (Paulian 1992, Frolov 2010a,b, 2012, 2014). The purpose of this paper is to describe a new species of Madecorphnus and provide a new record for M. dentatus Frolov, 2010.

A new genus and species of the termitophilous Neotropical Hybosorinae (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea: Hybosoridae) associated with Cornitermes (Isoptera: Termitidae) in the Cerrado ecoregion in Brazil

ABSTRACT The new hybosorine genus Taisia Frolov, Ocampo, Akhmetova et Vaz-de-Mello, gen. nov. is described from T. cornitermitis Frolov, Ocampo, Akhmetova et Vaz-de-Mello, sp. nov. from Mato Grosso State, Brazil. Taisia gen. nov. can be easily distinguished from the rest of the Neotropical Hybosorinae genera by the following characters: mandibular teeth long and robust; pronotum with serrate lateral margins; scutellum with two deep rectangular fossae basally; and metatibial apex protruding. Males of T. cornitermitis sp. nov. differ in having feather-like setae on the three basal tarsomeres of meso- and protarsi. The new taxon is associated with termites Cornitermes cf. bequaerti Emerson, 1952. www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:439DDABB-EBC2-4870-AA05-76ADC3BDB7D9

Revision of the Neotropical scarab beetle genus Aegidiellus Paulian (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Orphninae) with description of two new species

ABSTRACT The Neotropical Orphninae genus Aegidiellus Paulian is revised. Two new species are described: Aegidiellus zezaoi sp. nov. and Aegidiellus dentipenis sp. nov. The genus occurs in eastern Brazil, mostly in the Atlantic Forest ecoregion. Key to species, descriptions, illustrations of habitus and male genitalia, and distribution maps are given. www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:A5637C7C-F450-4919-AF48-7E281E893E95