512. Pachyiulus varius (Fabricius, 1781)

Iulus varius Fabricius, 1781 .

Julus nigripes C.L. Koch, 1847 .

Julus unicolor C.L. Koch, 1847 .

Distribution

AL, BA, BG, FR-FRA, GR-GRC, HR, IT-ITA, MK, MN, RO, SB, SI, TR-TUE. – Also Georgia.

Habitat

Common on karst. Collected from forest litter and rotting wood. Several records from caves.

Remarks

Pachyiulus varius is the oldest available name for a group of species which are notoriously difficult to distinguish. Mauriès et al. (1997) provided a good discussion of the problem and synonymised several other nominal species under P. varius . Recent studies by Frederiksen et al. (2012) suggest, however, that there are several species hiding under P. varius sensu Mauriès et al. (1997) . We therefore treat P. apfelbecki, P. flavipes and P. oenologus as separate species, although we realize that additional studies may yet change the picture. Numerous infraspecific forms have been named within the complex – their status is largely unresolved.