Family RHINORHIPIDAE

Rhinorhipus tamborinensis

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Introduction

This monogeneric family is represented by Rhinorhipus with a single described species from southern Queensland (CALDER 1998). The Rhinorhipidae are one of only six newly recognised coleopteran families described in the last 40 years. The position of the family within the Elateroidea is problematical and Rhinorhipus lacks one distinctive synapomorphy for the elateroid-cantharoid complex: the presence of only four Malpighian tubules. Lawrence (1988) concluded that a placement at the base of the elateroid-cantharoid lineage, along with other relatively primitive groups like the Artematopodidae and Brachyspectridae was the best solution. However, Lawrence, Nikitsky & Kirejtshuk (1995) produced cladograms with the assemblage Rhinorhipidae-Dascilloidea-Buprestidae usually forming part of a monophyletic clade. The family was listed as incertae sedis in the series Elateriformia by Lawrence & Newton (1995).

The biology of Rhinorhipus tamborinensis is poorly known. Lawrence (1988) records that adult beetles were collected at the edge of rainforest near small streams; at Tamborine Mountain, adults were collected on the leaves of an introduced noxious weed, crofton weed (Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng.).

Diagnosis

Adults are medium-sized, elongate, pubescent beetles, ranging in length from 5 to 7.5 mm, with moderately long, filiform antennae and strongly deflexed head. The clypeus is narrow, elongate and concealed, while the labrum is membranous. The prothorax is narrow, without lateral carinae. The metepisternum is broad and a transverse metasternal suture is absent. The fore coxae project below the prosternum. The trochantin is exposed and the fore coxal cavities are open both externally and internally. The mesocoxae are narrowly separated and the cavities partly closed by the mesepisternum. The abdomen has five ventrites with the basal three ventrites connate. The hind coxae are large with well devoloped vertical faces. The tibiae are moderately stout, tuberculate and expanded apically in the hind legs only. The tarsi are simple with tarsal formula 5–5–5, and the claws are pectinate (Lawrence & Britton 1994).

General References

Calder, A.A. 1998. Coleoptera: Elateroidea. In Wells, A. (ed.) Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Volume 29.6. Melbourne : CSIRO Publishing, Australia. xiii 248 pp.

Lawrence, J.F. 1988 [1987]. Rhinorhipidae, a new beetle family from Australia, with comments on the phylogeny of the Elateriformia. Invertebrate Taxonomy 2: 1-53 [Date published Oct. 14, 1988]

Lawrence, J.F., Nikitsky, N.B. & Kirejtshuk, A.G. 1995. Phylogenetic position of Decliniidae (Coleoptera: Scirtoidea) and comments on the classification of Elateriformia (sensu lato). pp. 375-410 in Pakaluk, J. & Ślipiński, S.A. (eds). Biology, Phylogeny, and Classification of Coleoptera; Papers Celebrating the 80th Birthday of Roy A. Crowson. Warszawa : Muzeum i Instytut Zoologii PAN Vol. 1 xii + 558 pp.

Lawrence, J.F. & Newton, A.F., Jr 1995. Families and subfamilies of Coleoptera (with selected genera, notes, references and data on family-group names). pp. 779-1006 in Pakaluk, J. & Ślipiński, S.A. (eds). Biology, Phylogeny and Classification of Coleoptera: Papers celebrating the 80th birthday of Roy A. Crowson. Warszawa : Muzeum i Instytut Zoologii PAN.

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