Vitaly I. Alekseev

The beetles (Insecta: Coleoptera) of Baltic amber: the checklist of described species and preliminary analysis of biodiversity

This paper contains a review of beetle species (Coleoptera) described from Baltic amber. The compiled checklist contains 434 species from 149 extinct and 138 extant genera. At this moment, 90 families are registered. The best known and therefore most diverse families are: Staphylinidae (77 described spp.), Curculionidae (46 spp.), Carabidae (32 spp.), Scirtidae (21 spp.), Cleridae (17 spp.), Elateridae (16 spp.), Dermestidae (16 spp.) and Cerambycidae (15 spp.). Possibly, about 530 species of beetles can be additionally described from Baltic amber. Straipsnis skirtas Baltijos gintare rastų vabalų (Coleoptera) apžvalgai. Sąrasas apima 434 rūsis, priklausancias 149 isnykusioms ir 138 dabar aptinkamoms gentims. Is viso Baltijos gintare yra užregistruota 90 vabalų seimų. Geriausiai žinomos ir didžiausia įvairove pasižymincios yra sios vabalų seimos: Staphylinidae (77 aprasytos rūsys), Curculionidae (46), Carabidae (32), Scirtidae (21), Cleridae (17), Elateridae (16), Dermestidae (16) ir Cerambycidae (15). Tik...

New and insufficiently known leaf-beetle species (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) of the Lithuanian fauna. 2

The data on 36 rare and insufficiently known leaf-beetle species in Lithuania are presented. Two species of them, Bruchidius villosus (Fabricius, 1792) and Longitarsus noricus (Leonardi, 1976), are mentioned for the local fauna for the first time. Spermophagus sericeus (Geoffroy, 1785) is removed from the list of Lithuanian Coleoptera. The first actual faunal data on Crioceris asparagi (Linnaeus, 1758), Cassida sanguinolenta Muller, 1776, Altica aenescens Weise, 1888, Altica brevicollis Foudras, 1861, Psylliodes attenuata (Koch, 1803), Psylliodes chrysocephala (Linnaeus, 1758), Psylliodes napi (Fabricius, 1792) and Psylliodes tricolor Weise, 1888 are presented and confirm the occurrence of these species in Lithuania. The records published in the current paper will complete information about distribution and bionomy of Chrysomelidae s. l. in Lithuania as well as in the whole Eastern Baltic region. Straipsnyje aprasomos 36 retos ir nepakankamai žinomos Lietuvoje aptinkamos lapgraužių rūsys. Dvi is jų – Bruc...

Glesirhanis bercioi , a new genus and species from Baltic amber (Coleoptera: Endomychidae: Leiestinae) with a checklist and nomenclatural notes regarding fossil Endomychidae

A new genus and species of handsome fungus beetle, Glesirhanis bercioi gen. nov., sp. nov. (Coleoptera: Endomychidae: Leiestinae) is described from Baltic amber. The newly described genus is compared with all known extant and extinct genera of the subfamily. A key to the genera of Leiestinae including fossils and a checklist of fossil Endomychidae are provided. The status of two taxa previously placed in Endomychidae, Palaeoendomychus gymnus Zhang and Tetrameropsis mesozoica Kirejtshuk & Azar, is discussed, and a new status for the latter, elevating it to the family-level as Tetrameropseidae status nov., is proposed.

New fossil species of Ptinidae (Insecta: Coleoptera) in Baltic amber (Tertiary, Eocene)

Eleven new species of death-watch and spider beetles from Baltic amber are described and illustrated: Ernobius varmicus sp. nov., E. barticus sp. nov., E. notangicus sp. nov., E. nadravicus sp. nov., Episernus palvenikensis sp. nov. (Ernobiinae); Dryophilus hoffeinsorum sp. nov., Homophthalmus kunnegsgarbensis sp. nov. (Dryophilinae); Dignomus regiomontanus sp. nov., Ptinus scalovicus sp. nov., P. burukovskyi sp. nov. and P. anastasiae sp. nov. (Ptininae). The newly described taxa are compared with the extinct and related extant representatives of the genera. New fossil records on Sucinoptinus sucini Belles et Vitali, 2007, S. bukejsi Alekseev, 2012, and Ptinus (Gynopterus) balticus Belles et Vitali, 2007 are presented. A check-list of all described fossil Ptinidae from Baltic amber is given.

Dytiscidae, Noteridae, Haliplidae, Hydraenidae, Hydrophilidae, Hydrochidae, Helophoridae, Spercheidae and Dryopidae (Coleoptera) of the Russian part of the Curonian Spit: an attempt of complex faunal analysis

An annotated checklist of nine сoleopteran families from the Russian part of the Curonian Spit has been compiled. The total amount of taxa include 90 species of 40 genera. The family Dytiscidae is represented by 42 species, Hydrophilidae by 32 species, Hydraenidae by five species, Helophoridae by three species, Haliplidae, Noteridae and Dryopidae by two species each, and Spercheidae and Hydrochidae by one species each. The specialised rheobiont and rheophil groups have not been recorded in the coleopterofauna of the Curonian Spit. On the contrary, the unspecialized eurybiont and stagnophil species associated with small temporal water bodies dominate. Especially interesting are the findings of species Hydroporus obscurus, Hygrotus parallelogrammus, Ilybius guttiger, Graphoderus austriacus, Peltodytes caesus, Cercyon castaneipennis, C. nigriceps, C. granarius, C. laminatus and Limnebius aluta. The possibility of habitation of aquatic Coleoptera in the Curonian Lagoon is discussed. Sudarytas devynių Coleopte...