Eleodes convexicollis Walker

Thomas, Donald B., Smith, Aaron D., Triplehorn, Charles A. & Aalbu, Rolf A., 2014, Walker’s Eleodes (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), Zootaxa 3835 (4), pp. 583-592 : 583-584

Eleodes convexicollis Walker ( Fig. 1)

Eleodes convexicollis Walker, 1866 . vol. 2. p. 328 (nec Blaisdell 1909).

Original Description: “Black, rather dull. Head slightly excavated on the fore border and on each side in front of the base of the antennae. Head and thorax very minutely punctured. Thorax very convex on each side before the middle. Elytra elongate oval, with distinct punctured striae, somewhat broader than the thorax, and more than thrice its length. Length of the body 14 lines.”

Type Material. HOLOTYPE by monotypy.

Labels: (a) [circular, margined in red; printed] “ Type H.T.” (b) [hand-script] “ convexicollis ”. Eleodes convexicollis Walker was placed in synonymy under Eleodes obscurus (Say 1824) on page 248 of Gebien’s (1910) catalog and we confirm that in fact the specimen is a female of that taxon as currently recognized. Eleodes obscurus is a widespread and variable species occurring from southern Canada to northern Mexico. Walker’s name is the senior homonym of a name proposed by Blaisdell (1909) for a subspecies of Eleodes extricatus (Say) which has been renamed as E. extricatus convexinotus Thomas (2005) . A table with synonymy follows the discussion of the next Walker species.