Helotidae
Helotidae is a family of beetles, in the suborder Polyphaga. The family includes about five extant genera, Helota MacLeay, Neohelota Ohta, Afrohelotina Kirejtshuk, Metahelotella Kirejtshuk, and Strophohelota Kirejtshuk.[1][2] Helotidae are found mainly in the Old World tropics and are absent from Australia and Madagascar. The antennae are clubbed on the final three segments and is retractable within grooves under the head. The wings have reduced venation with just 4 anal veins.[3]
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| Neohelota sp. | |
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| Family: | Helotidae |
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A few fossil species have been described including Palaeohelota parva from the Lower Cretaceous of the Yixian Formation in China, Burmahelota pengweii and Metahelotella monochromata from the Upper Cretaceous of Northern Myanmar. Another fossil genus Laodiscis placed in this family originally is now considered of uncertain taxonomic position.[4]
References
- Lee, Chi-Feng; Votruba, Petr (2013). "A revision of the family Helotidae (Coleoptera: Cucujoidea): VIII. The guerinii species-group of the genus Neohelota". Entomologica Basiliensia et Collectionis Frey. 34: 269–308.
- Lee, Chi-Feng (2007). "Revision of Family Helotidae (Coleoptera: Cucujoidea):I. Gemmata Group of Genus Helota". Ann. Entomol. Soc. Am. 100 (5): 623–639.
- Crowson, R.A. (1967). The natural classification of the families of Coleoptera. Middlesex: E.W. Classey Ltd. p. 104.
- Liu, Zhenhua; Ślipiński, Adam; Ren, Dong; Pang, Hong (2019). "The first Mesozoic Helotidae (Coleoptera: Cucujoidea)". Cretaceous Research. 96: 113–119. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2018.12.005.
Additional sources
- Ritsema C. (1915) A systematic catalogue of the Coleopterous family Helotidae in the Leiden Museum Zoologische Mededelingen, Vol. 1 P. 125-139 PDF
- Wegrzynowicz P. (2000) Catalogue of the Helotidae (Coleoptera: Cucujoidea), Zoologische Mededelingen, Vol. 73 P. 391-411 PDF