The riffle beetle genus Hexanchorus Sharp, 1882 is distributed from Mexico to Argentina, forming an important component of the freshwater invertebrate fauna of Latin America. With 21 described species, Hexanchorus represents one of the most speciose Larainae genera, but its real diversity is likely much higher. We analysed material from a relatively small area in Ecuador, resulting in the first record of H.cordillierae for Ecuador and discovery of four new species and one subspecies: Hexanchorusvirilissp. n., Hexanchorusrostratussp. n., Hexanchorusshepardisp. n., Hexanchorusonoreisp. n. and Hexanchorusonoreisagittatusssp. n. For delimiting and characterizing species, both morphological and molecular (mtCOI DNA barcodes) data were used. A distribution map of Hexanchorus species is provided based on published records.
The genus Onychelmis Hinton, 1941 was for a long time regarded as a small taxon with only three known species distributed in the Andes. A study of new material from Ecuador, using morphological and molecular data, has resulted in the discovery of five new species: Onychelmis lenkae sp. nov., O. lobata sp. nov., O. minor sp. nov., O. onorei sp. nov. and O. splendida sp. nov. We also revised the entire genus and redescribed the three known species, O. longicollis (Sharp, 1882), O. leleupi Delève, 1968 and O. whiteheadi Spangler & Santiago, 1991. Habitus photographs of adults are provided, together with line drawings of male and female genitalia, and schematic illustrations of the distribution of femoral tomentum for each species. DNA sequences for barcoding the COI mtDNA fragment were used to support species delimitation and to suggest possible relationships among species. The revision includes a key to adults of all species of Onychelmis and notes on the biogeography of the genus, with an updated distribution map.
The riffle beetle genus Hexanchorus Sharp is, with 25 known species, the most speciose genus of the subfamily Larainae in the Neotropics and the second largest globally. An analysis of its phylogeny, based on two mitochondrial (COI, 16S) and two nuclear (18S, 28S) markers, including Hexanchorus-like, but morphologically distinct specimens, supported presence of an unknown genus. The new genus, Rumilaragen. nov., is described here with four new species (R. obscurasp. nov., R. paternasp. nov., R. riberaisp. nov., R. suppressasp. nov.) and their larvae. The separate position of the new genus is, beside molecular differences, well substantiated by the morphology of adults (the absence of sexual dimorphism, structure of the pronotum) and larvae (pleurites never reaching to sixth abdominal ventrite). H. sagittatusstat. nov. is elevated to species rank based on molecular data, and Rumilara leleupi (Delève) comb. nov. is transferred from the genus Hexanchorus and redescribed, based on its morphology.
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