Sphaerius
{{short description|Genus of beetles}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| image = Microsporus acaroides Waltl, 1838 (= Microsporus obsidianus Kolenati 1846) (4288324594).jpg
| image_caption = Sphaerius acaroides
| fossil_range = {{Fossil range/linked|Cenomanian|recent|ref=}}
| taxon = Sphaerius
| authority = Waltl, 1838
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = See text
| synonyms = * Microsporus Kolenati, 1846
- Neosphaerius Oke, 1954
}}
Sphaerius is a genus of beetles in the family Sphaeriusidae, comprising 18 extant species. It is one of the two extant genera in the family, the other being Bezesporum. They are typically found along the edges of streams and rivers, where they feed on algae; they occur on all continents except Antarctica. Three species occur in the United States.
The overall form of the beetle is convex, glossy, dark brown or black with some markings possible. The head is prominent, with relatively large eyes set far apart, and capitate antennae. Total length ranges from {{cvt|0.5|–|1.2|mm}}.
The beetles occur in a variety of damp environments, including mud, under stones, among plant roots and leaf litter, and in mosses in bogs. They store some air underneath their elytra.
Females produce a single large egg at a time.
The family used to be known as "Sphaeriidae", but the name was preoccupied by a family of freshwater clams. The name was inappropriately replaced with "Microsporidae" (by changing the genus name to Microsporus), but this act has been superseded by a return to the use of Sphaerius and a reformation of the family name as Sphaeriusidae.{{aut|ICZN}} 2000: Opinion 1957. Sphaerius Waltl, 1838 (Insecta, Coleoptera): conserved; and Sphaeriidae Erichson, 1845 (Coleoptera): spelling emended to Sphaeriusidae, so removing the homonymy with Sphaeriidae Deshayes, 1854 (1820) (Mollusca, Bivalvia). Bulletin of zoological nomenclature, 57: 182–184. {{ISSN|0007-5167}} [http://biostor.org/reference/5564 BioStor] The position of the family within Coleoptera has also changed a number of times.Ross H. Arnett, Jr. and Michael C. Thomas, American Beetles (CRC Press, 2001)
Species
The genus includes the following 18 extant species, as of 2022:{{Cite journal |last1=Fikáček |first1=Martin |last2=Yamamoto |first2=Shûhei |last3=Matsumoto |first3=Keita |last4=Beutel |first4=Rolf G. |last5=Maddison |first5=David R. |date=April 2023 |orig-year=2022 |title=Phylogeny and systematics of Sphaeriusidae (Coleoptera: Myxophaga): minute living fossils with underestimated past and present‐day diversity |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/syen.12571 |journal=Systematic Entomology |volume=48 |issue=2 |pages=233–249 |doi=10.1111/syen.12571 |s2cid=254440169 |url-access=subscription }}
- Sphaerius acaroides {{small|Waltl, 1838}} – Europe
- Sphaerius africanus {{small|(Endrödy-Younga, 1997)}} – South Africa
- Sphaerius alticola {{small|(Löbl, 1995)}} – Nepal
- Sphaerius coomani {{small|Lesne, 1936}} – Vietnam
- Sphaerius gustavlohsei {{small|(Löbl, 1995)}} – Nepal, India: Darjeeling
- Sphaerius hispanicus {{small|Matthews, 1899}} – France, Spain, Algeria, Tunisia
- Sphaerius humicola {{small|(Löbl, 1995)}} – Nepal
- Sphaerius laeviventris {{small|Champion, 1923}} – India: Uttarakhand
- Sphaerius madecassus {{small|Paulian, 1949}} – Madagascar
- Sphaerius obsoletus {{small|Lesne, 1936}} – Vietnam
- Sphaerius ovensensis {{small|(Oke, 1954)}} – Australia
- Sphaerius perlaevis {{small|Lesne, 1936}} – Vietnam
- Sphaerius politus {{small|Horn, 1868}} – USA: California
- Sphaerius silvicola {{small|(Löbl, 1995)}} – Nepal
- Sphaerius spississimus {{small|Lesne, 1935}} – France: Corsica, Italy: Sardinia, Israel
- Sphaerius tesselatus {{small|Lesne, 1936}} – Vietnam
- Sphaerius texanus {{small|Matthews, 1899}} – USA: Texas
- Sphaerius tropicus {{small|Matthews, 1888}} – Guatemala
Species transferred to Bezesporum:
- Sphaerius minutus {{small|Liang & Jia, 2018}} – China: Jiangxi
- Sphaerius papulosus {{small|Lesne, 1940}} – Myanmar
Species of unclear assignment:
- Sphaerius cribratus {{small|Lesne, 1936}} – Vietnam
- Sphaerius favosus {{small|Lesne, 1936}} – Vietnam
Species excluded from Sphaeriusidae (actually representatives of Corylophidae):
- "Sphaerius" coenensis {{small|Oke, 1954}} – Australia
- "Sphaerius" scutellaris {{small|(LeConte, 1878)}} – USA
Fossil species
- †Sphaerius martini {{small|Li and Cai, 2023}} – Burmese amber, Myanmar, Cenomanian{{Cite journal |last1=Li |first1=Yan-Da |last2=Ślipiński |first2=Adam |last3=Huang |first3=Di-Ying |last4=Cai |first4=Chen-Yang |name-list-style=amp |date=11 January 2023 |title=New fossils of Sphaeriusidae from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber revealed by confocal microscopy (Coleoptera: Myxophaga) |journal=Frontiers in Earth Science |volume=10 |doi=10.3389/feart.2022.901573 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2023FrEaS..10.1573L }}
References
External links
- [http://tolweb.org/Sphaeriusidae Sphaeriusidae] Tree of Life
{{Coleoptera|3}}
{{Taxonbar|from1=Q606681|from2=Q16209130}}