New data on the taxonomy of ground-beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) from North-Western China

Abstract

Three new taxa of carabid beetles are described from the Xinjiang-Uygur Autonomous Region of China: Leistus (s. str.) kutpegen sp. n. from the vicinities of the Hemu (= Kom) Village on the Mongolian Altai Mt. Range, similar to L. (s. str.) frater Reitter, 1897 and L. (s. str.) kryzhanovskii Dudko, 2003, but differs by larger body size, the shape of the pronotum and elytra, and the structure of the male genitalia; Carabus (Ophiocarabus) successor eoketmenicus ssp. n. from the eastern part of the Wusunshan (= Ketmen) Mt. Range, which is easily to be recognized among all known geographic forms of the species by the broad body, shape of the pronotum and the endophallus structure; and C. (Ophiocarabus) kurdaiensis sp. n. from the Kurdai Pass (Narat Mt. Range) which is similar to C. (Ophiocarabus) tekesensis Deuve et Tian, 2004 but differs by more strongly curved apical portion of the aedeagus and by the structure of the endophallus. Carabus (Alipoaster) semenoviellus Breuning, 1932, stat. rest. is redescribed based on the newly collected material, its specific status is proved, the exact data on distribution and bionomics of this poorly known species are provided for the first time.

Keywords

• Coleoptera
• Carabidae
• Leistus
• Carabus
• taxonomy
• Altai
• Tien Shan
• Xinjiang-Uygur Autonomous Region
• China