Bledius basalis LeConte, 1877

Majka, Christopher, Klimaszewski, Jan & Lauff, Randolph, 2008, The coastal rove beetles (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae) of Atlantic Canada: a survey and new records, ZooKeys 2 (2), pp. 115-150 : 129

Bledius basalis LeConte, 1877

NEW BRUNSWICK: Queens Co.: Jemseg, 8.VI.2003, R.P. Webster, silver-maple forest, moist bare clay, (1, RWC). NOVA SCOTIA: Annapolis Co. : Melveryn Square, 24.VI.1992, E. Georgeson, light trap, (9, NSNR) ; Halifax Co.: Petpeswick , 23.VI.1971, B. Wright, (2, NSMC) .

Bledius basalis is newly recorded in New Brunswick. Its distribution in Atlantic Canada is shown in Fig. 14 . Herman (1976) indicated that the species was found in coastal habitats from Texas north to Rhode Island. Howden (1970) recorded the species from Sable Island (Nova Scotia), the only previously known Canadian location. The above specimens collected from Petpeswick and Melveryn Square establish the occurrence of this species on the mainland of Nova Scotia.

All the sites where this species has been recorded in the United States are coastal and most are slightly moist, slightly vegetated sand flats adjacent to the ocean ( Herman 1976). This is true of Petpeswick, a sandy inlet on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia. Melveryn Square, however, lies in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia, although it is only 9 km from “Sand Banks”, a sandy coastal beach on the Bay of Fundy, and B. basalis is macropterous and a capable flier. Jemseg (New Brunswick) is 70 km inland from the Bay of Fundy, however, it is located on the shores of Grand Lake, which at 174 km 2, is the largest freshwater body in Atlantic Canada. This would appear to indicate that B. basalis , while occurring predominantly in coastal localities, can also be found in appropriate inland sites away from the ocean.

Figures

Fig. 14. The distribution of Bledius basalis, Bledius mandibularis, Bledius neglectus, Bledius opaculus, and Bledius politus in Atlantic Canada.