''Tarsostenus'' is a genus of

checkered beetle Cleridae are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea. They are commonly known as checkered beetles. The family Cleridae has a worldwide distribution, and a variety of habitats and feeding preferences. Cleridae have many niches and feed ...

s in the family

Cleridae Cleridae are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea. They are commonly known as checkered beetles. The family Cleridae has a worldwide distribution, and a variety of habitats and feeding preferences. Cleridae have many niches and fe ...

. It includes the

cosmopolitan Cosmopolitan may refer to: Food and drink * Cosmopolitan (cocktail), also known as a "Cosmo" History * Rootless cosmopolitan, a Soviet derogatory epithet during Joseph Stalin's anti-Semitic campaign of 1949–1953 Hotels and resorts * Cosmopoli ...

species ''T. univittatus''.

Description

''Tarsostenus'' are oblong beetles 3.5–8.0 mm long and 1.0–2.0 mm wide. They can be recognised by a distinctly oblong pronotum with glabrous streaks on the disc and without lateral tubercles, the elytral disc with 10 rows of punctations, and the unguis lacking a denticle. Several species within the genus have a transverse white band halfway along the elytra.

Ecology

Based on those species whose ecology is known, ''Tarsostenus'' are predators on

wood-boring beetles The term woodboring beetle encompasses many species and families of beetles whose larval or adult forms eat and destroy wood (i.e., are xylophagous). In the woodworking industry, larval stages of some are sometimes referred to as woodworms. The t ...

. For example, ''T. univittatus'' preys on bostrichids ( ''Lyctus'', ''

Sinoxylon ''Sinoxylon'' is a genus of beetle native to Europe, the Afro-tropical region, the Australian region, the Near East The ''Near East''; he, המזרח הקרוב; arc, ܕܢܚܐ ܩܪܒ; fa, خاور نزدیک, Xāvar-e nazdik; tr, Yakın ...

'', '' Xylobiops'' and ''

Trogoxylon ''Trogoxylon'' is a genus of beetles in the family Bostrichidae. They are members of the subfamily Lyctinae Powderpost beetles are a group of seventy species of woodboring beetles classified in the insect subfamily Lyctinae. These beetles, ...

'') and anobiines. It has been found in borer-infested lumber and wooden furniture from a range of different trees:

ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

hickory Hickory is a common name for trees composing the genus ''Carya'', which includes around 18 species. Five or six species are native to China, Indochina, and India (Assam), as many as twelve are native to the United States, four are found in Mexi ...

, persimmon, white oak, ''Vahellia tortilis'' (=''Acacia tortilis'') ''Hayne raddiana,''

pecan The pecan (''Carya illinoinensis'') is a species of hickory native to the southern United States and northern Mexico in the region of the Mississippi River. The tree is cultivated for its seed in the southern United States, primarily in Georgia, ...

, ''

Cercis siliquastrum ''Cercis siliquastrum'', commonly known as the Judas tree or Judas-tree, is a small deciduous tree in the flowering plant family Fabaceae which is noted for its prolific display of deep pink flowers in spring. It is native to Southern Europe and ...

'', '' Corymbia maculata'' (=''Eucalyptus maculata''), ''

Ficus retusa ''Ficus retusa'' is a species of evergreen woody plant in the fig genus, native to the Malay Archipelago and Malesia floristic region. The species name has been widely mis-applied to ''Ficus microcarpa''. Description ''Ficus retusa'' is a rapidl ...

'', ''Schinus terebinthifolius'' and ''Triplochiton sclerodendron''. ''Tarsostenus hilaris'' has been collected from ''

Eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as euca ...

'' "laden with various species of cerambycids". The

holotype A holotype is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism, known to have been used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of several ...

of ''T. kanak'' was collected by beating unspecified vegetation in a rainforest.

Species

Listed below are the species of ''Tarsostenus'', along with their distributions: * ''Tarsostenus antehelvis'' Optiz, 2016 -

Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini; ho, Papua Niu Gini), officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea ( tpi, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niugini; ho, Independen Stet bilong Papua Niu Gini), is a country i ...

* ''Tarsostenus'' ''bicolor'' Optiz, 2016 -

New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...

* ''Tarsostenus hilaris'' (Westwood, 1849) -

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

* ''Tarsostenus'' ''kanak'' Optiz, 2016 - New Caledonia * ''Tarsostenus tricolor'' (Heller, 1916) - New Caledonia * ''Tarsostenus univittatus'' Rossi, 1972 - Cosmopolitan Tarsostenus univittatus-Curtis

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q4050743 Cleridae Articles created by Qbugbot

Description

Ecology

Species

References

Further reading

External links