Leiodidae Fleming, 1821

Berx, Peter, Bosmans, Bart, Dekoninck, Wouter, Janssen, Marc, Stassen, Eugène & Crevecoeur, Luc, 2023, Faunistic survey of myrmecophilous and other ant-associated beetles and spiders in the Belgian province of Limburg (Araneae, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera: Formicidae), Belgian Journal of Entomology 141, pp. 1-61 : 21

Leiodidae Fleming, 1821

The leiodid beetles are represented in Limburg with 31 species of which eight have been associated with ants according to the consulted literature and confirmed by our own research (Annex). The available sources lead to the conclusion that they are mainly observed in the vicinity of the xylobiont L. fuliginosus . Catops picipes (5.0- 6.5 mm) ( Fig. 17A ) prefers a subterranean environment such as burrows of various mammals to develop his life cycle. Apparently, this species has a distinctly strong foraging behaviour. Of the 207 specimens captured, 135 were collected with pitfall traps compared to 31 with sifting of rotten wood at the base of a tree. Another 25 specimens have been captured with cavity traps (pitfall trap set up in a hollow tree). Nargus wilkini (2.2-2.4 mm) ( Fig. 17 B ) is certainly not restricted to habitats with an abundance of leaf-litter or organic debris as will be found near a nest of L. fuliginosus . Moreover, this species can be observed in large numbers in the same location. With a pitfall, set up in an agricultural field, we collected 41 specimens in 2009 at Neerrepen (FS7231). Among the other species listed here ( Table 14), Ptomaphagus medius (1.8-3.0 mm) and Sciodrepoides watsoni (2.6-3.4 mm) ( Fig. 17 C ) are found primarily in corridors and burrows of mammals, mainly rodents, and are attracted to carcasses. The ant Temnothorax affinis is one of our arboreal species, which creates its nests in bark or parts of dead wood from living trees and was encountered with Agathidium nigripenne (2.0-4.0 mm) on an oak tree.

Figures

Fig.17. A, Catops picipes (Fabricius, 1787) (5.5 mm), © Ignace David. B, Nargus wilkini(Spence, 1815) (2.3 mm), © Ignace David. C, Sciodrepoides watsoni (Spence, 1815) (2.6-3.4mm), © U. Schmidt.