Colossochares Explained

Colossochares is an Afrotropical genus of water scavenger beetle in the family Hydrophilidae represented by two described species.^[1]

Taxonomy

The genus Colossochares was created in 2021 to group two species of Afrotropical water scavenger beetles in the subfamily Acidocerinae that were formerly placed in the genus Helochares.

Evidence for separating these species from Helochares and constituting a new genus was provided by molecular data.^[2]

Description

Relatively large beetles (8.5–14.0 mm), dark brown in coloration, very convex in lateral view. A diagnosis of the genus was presented by Girón and Short.

Species

1. Colossochares ellipticus (d'Orchymont, 1933) ^[3]
2. Colossochares satoi (Hebauer, 2003) ^[4]

Notes and References

1. Girón. Jennifer C.. Short. Andrew Edward Z.. 2021-06-18. The Acidocerinae (Coleoptera, Hydrophilidae): taxonomy, classification, and catalog of species. ZooKeys. 1045. 1–236. 10.3897/zookeys.1045.63810. 1313-2970. 8233300. 34228772. free.
2. Short. Andrew Edward Z.. Girón. Jennifer C.. Toussaint. Emmanuel F. A.. 2021. Evolution and biogeography of acidocerine water scavenger beetles (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae) shaped by Gondwanan vicariance and Cenozoic isolation of South America. Systematic Entomology. en. 46. 2. 380–395. 10.1111/syen.12467. 232264478. 1365-3113.
3. d'Orchymont. A.. 1933. Contribution à l'étude des Palpicornia VIII. Bulletin et Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique. 73. 271–314, pl. 5.
4. Hebauer. F.. 2003. A new species of the genus Helochares (Coleoptera, Hydrophilidae) from Africa. Special Bulletin of the Japanese Society of Coleopterology. 6. 129–132.