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A Taxonomic Revision of the Genus Megetra (Coleoptera: Meloidae) with Ecological and Behavioral Notes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 May 2012

Richard B. Selander
Affiliation:
Entomology Research Institute, Research Branch, Canada Department of Agriculture, Ottawa

Abstract>

Three species are recognized in the North American genus Megetra LeConte. The most distinctive of these anatomically and ecologically is M. cancellata (Brandt and Erichson), which ranges discontinuously from Arizona and New Mexico to the state of Hidalgo in México and occurs in limited sympatry with both of its congeners. Megetra vittata (LeConte) ranges from northern Arizona to western Texas. It appears to be strictly allopatric with, and similar ecologically to, M. punctata, new species, which ranges from southern Arizona and New Mexico to Durango, México. Specific diagnoses are made on the basis of characters of adult and, for M. cancellata and M. punctata, larval anatomy. Intraspecific variation in several adult characters is analyzed. Notes on the seasonal distribution, habitat, and behavior of the adult beetles are included.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Entomological Society of Canada 1965

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