STEVENALTICA, A NEW GENUS OF MOSS AND LEAF-LITTER INHABITING FLEA BEETLES FROM BOLIVIA (COLEOPTERA: CHRYSOMELIDAE: GALERUCINAE: ALTICINI).

A new genus, Stevenaltica, with two new species, S. normi and S. erronis, from Bolivia is described and illustrated. It is similar to Exoceras Jacoby. An identification key for all flea beetle genera known to occur in mosses in the Western Hemisphere is provided

DISCOVERY OF THE FIRST NEARCTIC MOSS-EATING FLEA BEETLE, DISTIGMOPTERA BOREALIS BLAKE, 1943 (COLEOPTERA: CHRYSOMELIDAE: GALERUCINAE: ALTICINI)

A flea beetle, Distigmoptera borealis Blake, 1943, is documented for the first time to feed on liverworts, Reboulia hemisphaerica (L.) Raddi (Aytoniaceae), and moss, Weissia controversa Hedw. (Pottiaceae). This is the first and only known bryobiont leaf beetle in the USA and Nearctic biogeographic region. The adult of D. borealis is redescribed and illustrated, and the larva and pupa of D. borealis are described and illustrated for the first time

An overview of the Brazilian Chrysomelidae (Insecta: Coleoptera): The most species-rich beetle family in Brazil

The leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae) are one of the most species-rich family of herbivorous beetles with about 45,000 species worldwide. Based on the contributions of chrysomelidologists to the Taxonomic Catalog of the Brazilian Fauna - CTFB, the family comprises 6,079 species in 562 genera of which 951 species are endemic to Brazil, standing out as the most diverse, representing 4.8% of the Brazilian fauna and 17.1% of the beetle species. Chrysomelidae has twelve subfamilies with nine reported to Brazil: Galerucinae, the richest with 1,916 species in 202 genera, followed by Cassidinae, Eumolpinae, Cryptocephalinae, Chrysomelinae, Bruchinae, Criocerinae, Lamprosomatinae and Sagrinae - this with only one species. Most of these subfamilies need urgent revision, since many species are poorly characterized, and polymorphism is frequent in some groups. The Czech couple Jan and Bohumila Bechyně were the researchers who described most species from Brazil. Furthermore, despite the increase of research on biology, natural history, host plants, genetics, ecology from 1980’s much still need to be investigated to better known the Brazilian Chrysomelidae and probably many new species are yet to be discovered

Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil: Setting the baseline knowledge on the animal diversity in Brazil

The limited temporal completeness and taxonomic accuracy of species lists, made available in a traditional manner in scientific publications, has always represented a problem. These lists are invariably limited to a few taxonomic groups and do not represent up-to-date knowledge of all species and classifications. In this context, the Brazilian megadiverse fauna is no exception, and the Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil (CTFB) (http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br/), made public in 2015, represents a database on biodiversity anchored on a list of valid and expertly recognized scientific names of animals in Brazil. The CTFB is updated in near real time by a team of more than 800 specialists. By January 1, 2024, the CTFB compiled 133,691 nominal species, with 125,138 that were considered valid. Most of the valid species were arthropods (82.3%, with more than 102,000 species) and chordates (7.69%, with over 11,000 species). These taxa were followed by a cluster composed of Mollusca (3,567 species), Platyhelminthes (2,292 species), Annelida (1,833 species), and Nematoda (1,447 species). All remaining groups had less than 1,000 species reported in Brazil, with Cnidaria (831 species), Porifera (628 species), Rotifera (606 species), and Bryozoa (520 species) representing those with more than 500 species. Analysis of the CTFB database can facilitate and direct efforts towards the discovery of new species in Brazil, but it is also fundamental in providing the best available list of valid nominal species to users, including those in science, health, conservation efforts, and any initiative involving animals. The importance of the CTFB is evidenced by the elevated number of citations in the scientific literature in diverse areas of biology, law, anthropology, education, forensic science, and veterinary science, among others

Coleoptera of Brazil: what we knew then and what we know now. Insights from the Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil

ABSTRACT In 2000, Cleide Costa published a paper presenting the state of knowledge of the Neotropical Coleopte ra, with a focus on the Brazilian fauna. Twenty-four years later, thanks to the development of the Coleoptera section of the Taxonomic Catalog of the Brazilian Fauna (CTFB - Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil) through the collaboration of 100 coleopterists from all over the globe, we can build on Costa’s work and present an updated overview of the state of knowledge of the beetles from Brazil. There are currently 35,699 species in 4,958 genera and 116 families known to occur in the country, including representatives of all extant suborders and superfamilies. Our data show that the Brazilian beetle fauna is the richest on the planet, concentrating 9% of the world species diversity, with some estimates accounting to up to 15% of the global total. The most diverse family in numbers of genera is Cerambycidae (1,056 genera), while in number of species it is Chrysomelidae (6,079 species). Conotrachelus Dejean, 1835 (Curculionidae) is the most species-rich genus, with 570 species. The French entomologist Maurice Pic is the author who has contributed the most to the naming of species recorded from Brazil, with 1,794 valid names in 36 families, whereas the Brazilians Ubirajara R. Martins and Maria Helena M. Galileo are the only ones among the top-ten authors to have named species in the 21st century. Currently, approximately 144 new species of Brazilian beetles are described each year, and this average is projected to increase in the next decade to 180 species per year, or about one new Brazilian beetle every two days

Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil: setting the baseline knowledge on the animal diversity in Brazil

The limited temporal completeness and taxonomic accuracy of species lists, made available in a traditional manner in scientific publications, has always represented a problem. These lists are invariably limited to a few taxonomic groups and do not represent up-to-date knowledge of all species and classifications. In this context, the Brazilian megadiverse fauna is no exception, and the Catálogo Taxonômico da Fauna do Brasil (CTFB) (http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br/), made public in 2015, represents a database on biodiversity anchored on a list of valid and expertly recognized scientific names of animals in Brazil. The CTFB is updated in near real time by a team of more than 800 specialists. By January 1, 2024, the CTFB compiled 133,691 nominal species, with 125,138 that were considered valid. Most of the valid species were arthropods (82.3%, with more than 102,000 species) and chordates (7.69%, with over 11,000 species). These taxa were followed by a cluster composed of Mollusca (3,567 species), Platyhelminthes (2,292 species), Annelida (1,833 species), and Nematoda (1,447 species). All remaining groups had less than 1,000 species reported in Brazil, with Cnidaria (831 species), Porifera (628 species), Rotifera (606 species), and Bryozoa (520 species) representing those with more than 500 species. Analysis of the CTFB database can facilitate and direct efforts towards the discovery of new species in Brazil, but it is also fundamental in providing the best available list of valid nominal species to users, including those in science, health, conservation efforts, and any initiative involving animals. The importance of the CTFB is evidenced by the elevated number of citations in the scientific literature in diverse areas of biology, law, anthropology, education, forensic science, and veterinary science, among others

Figure 9 from: Linzmeier AM, Konstantinov AS (2018) Andersonoplatus, a new, remarkable leaf litter inhabiting genus of Monoplatina (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini). ZooKeys 744: 79-138. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.744.22766

Andersonoplatus, a new genus with 16 new species from Venezuela (A. andersoni, A. bechyneorum, A. castaneus, A. flavus, A. jolyi, A. laculata, A. lagunanegra, A. macubaji, A. merga, A. merida, A. microoculus, A. peck, A. rosalesi, A. sanare, A. saviniae) and Panama (A. baru), is described and illustrated. All the specimens were collected in leaf litter by R. Anderson and S. and J. Peck. Andersonoplatus is compared to Andersonaltica Linzmeier & Konstantinov, Apleuraltica Bechyne, Distigmoptera Blake and Ulrica Scherer

A NEW GENUS OF FLEA BEETLES (COLEOPTERA: CHRYSOMELIDAE) FROM THE SOUTH OF BRAZIL

Deciplatus, a new genus of Monoplatina with two new species (D. jundiaiensis and D. nigritus), from the south of Brazil is described and illustrated.Deciplatus is compared to Ulrica Scherer and Laselva Furth. Use of the name Monoplatina is clarified

Assembleia de Alticini (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae) em fragmentos florestais no sudoeste do Paraná, Brasil

RESUMO Alticini é a maior tribo de Chrysomelidae e representa grande parte da fauna de insetos fitófagos. Entretanto, o conhecimento dessa tribo no sudoeste do Paraná é inexistente e neste estudo o objetivo foi buscar informações sobre a riqueza, abundância, diversidade e composição das assembleias nesta região. O estudo foi realizado semanalmente, com armadilha Malaise, de outubro/2016 a março/2017 em fragmentos de mata nos municípios de Planalto, Realeza e Santa Izabel do Oeste. Foram coletados 1.657 indivíduos de Alticini pertencentes a 20 gêneros e 59 espécies sendo que a maioria delas apresentou poucos indivíduos. As espécies mais abundantes foram Trichaltica sp. 2, Margaridisa sp., Omophoita octoguttata e Epitrix sp. 1, correspondendo a 85,8% de todos os Alticini coletados. Margaridisa sp. foi a espécie dominante nos fragmentos de Santa Izabel do Oeste e Realeza. Trichaltica sp. 2 foi coletada somente no fragmento de Planalto. Quanto à composição de espécies, a similaridade foi baixa e apenas quatro espécies foram compartilhadas entre todos os fragmentos. Este foi o primeiro inventário desenvolvido no sudoeste do Paraná que contribui para o conhecimento das espécies de Alticini dessa região.</jats:p