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Photo#149227
Wrack-heap roves - Cafius aguayoi

Wrack-heap roves - Cafius aguayoi
Odiorne State Park, Rockingham County, New Hampshire, USA
September 22, 2007
Size: est 5.5 - 7.5 mm
Collected by sifting wrack deposits along the rocky coast at the annual all-taxa BioBlitz hosted by the Seacoast Science Center. I could have had live ones to photograph but I killed them just as our beetle expert was putting away his scope and now must shoot and post to get IDs of these dead specimens for the Bioblitz species list.

Grouped for the shoot by what I thought to be same species, this group had a fair variety to it. Am I looking at two or three species here? I propose to reshoot these separately.

Moved
Moved from Cafius.

Roves wearing lifejackets
Jim, you were right in supposing these three are not all the same species. For the bottom and middle one I agree on Cafius sp. (if the same?), while the top one, by my opinion, is a Paderinae, maybe Lathro*bium sp.

A short, dense and silky "fur" on the body is a common feature of Staphs living in kelp heaps. When the beetle is drowned, it holds an air film and makes them pop up to the surface.

 
Good to know about the fur.
However, I'm inclined to agree with Don that the top and bottom beetles are simply cocked at 45 degrees or so, making them appear thinner. I've re-photographed these beetles and the apparent differences faded away.

 
News
Knowing you have re-investigated the specimens, I put away my doubts. It seems that the abdomen of the top specimen is artificially extended by swelling, and I have been mislead by this.

In the meantime, I have tried to find out more about the species. Don already told us, that there are but two east-cost species of Cafius. The one here seemed familiar to me, and in fact it was: It is the transatlantic Cafius (Remus) sericeus.
Remus in Europe is still treated as independent by many, and it being included into Cafius was new to me. The difference to typical Cafius is obvious: Dense fur on the whole body (head and pronotum bare in Cafius s.str. except some bristles).

 
Cafius aguayoi
according to Don Chandler. This is the smaller of the two seacoast Cafius species. If it looks familiar, could it be a case of synonymy?

 
synonymy, it seems to be
Not listed in ITIS and Nearctica, but found this entry in the latters supplement division:
"Cafius
Change spelling: Cafius aguayoi [not aquayoi] Bierig 1934 (syn. of sericeus)"

Moved
Moved from Rove Beetles.

Cafius sp.
I think one species.

 
Thanks, Don.
I guess they vary within the species.

 
The middle
one does look a bit different, but I think it is just the angle - it is flat to the camera while the other two are slightly tilted.

 
I've taken new pics
and am inclned to agree. I'll post when I can. Gotta PhotoShop 'em first :-)

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