Helobata Explained

Helobata is a mostly Neotropical genus of water scavenger beetle in the family Hydrophilidae. It contains 13 described species, one of which is broadly distributed, reaching North America.^{[1] [2] [3]}

Taxonomy

The genus Helobata was described for the first time by Ernst Evald Bergroth in 1888.^[4]

It belongs in the subfamily Acidocerinae and contains 13 described species.

Description

Medium-sized beetles (4–7 mm), yellowish-brown to dark brown in coloration, with granulose surface, usually with a mottled or patterned appearance. The pronotum and elytra are flattened and broadly explanate. The maxillary palps are long. A complete diagnosis was presented by Girón and Short.^[1]

Habitat

According to Girón and Short "Species of Helobata occur primarily in open habitats with abundant vegetation".^[1]

Species

The genus includes the following species:

1. Helobata amazonensis Clarkson, Santos & Ferreira-Jr, 2016: Brazil (Amazonas, Roraima) ^[5]
2. Helobata aschnakiranae Makhan, 2007: Suriname^[6]
3. Helobata bitriangulata García, 2000: Venezuela^[7]
4. Helobata confusa Fernández & Bachmann, 1987: Argentina, Paraguay^[8]
5. Helobata corumbaensis Fernández & Bachmann, 1987: Brazil (Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul)
6. Helobata cossyphoides (Bruch, 1915): Argentina^[9]
7. Helobata cuivaum García, 2000: Venezuela
8. Helobata larvalis (Horn, 1873):^[10] Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil (Amazonas, Ceará, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais), Cuba, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Venezuela. U.S.A. (California, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia).
9. Helobata lilianae García, 2000: Venezuela
10. Helobata pantaneira Clarkson, Santos & Ferreira-Jr, 2016: Brazil (Mato Grosso)
11. Helobata perpunctata Fernández & Bachmann, 1987: Argentina
12. Helobata quatipuru Fernández & Bachmann, 1987: Brazil (Minas Gerais, Pará, Rio de Janeiro)
13. Helobata soesilae Makhan, 2007: Suriname

Notes and References

1. Girón. Jennifer C.. Short. Andrew Edward Z.. 2021-06-18. The Acidocerinae (Coleoptera, Hydrophilidae): taxonomy, classification, and catalog of species. ZooKeys. 1045. 1–236. 10.3897/zookeys.1045.63810. 1313-2970. 8233300. 34228772. free.
2. Andrew E.Z. . Short . Martin . Fikacek . World catalogue of the Hydrophiloidea (Coleoptera): additions and corrections II (2006-1010) . Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae . 2011 . 51 . 1 . 83–122 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150813161822/http://cercyon.eu/Publications_PDF/ShortFikacek_CatalogueUpdateII.pdf . August 13, 2015 . dead .
3. Book: Hansen, Michael . World Catalogue of Insects Volume 2: Hydrophiloidea (s. str.) (Coleoptera) . Apollo Books . Stenstrup . 1999 . 8788757315.
4. Bergroth. E.. 1888. Fåhraea nov. gen. Hydrophilidarum. Deutsche entomologische Zeitschrift. 32. 1–221.
5. Clarkson. Bruno. Santos. André Dias Dos. Ferreira-Jr. Nelson. 2016-06-21. On Brazilian Helobata Bergroth, 1888 (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae): description of two new species, new records, and key to species. Zootaxa. 4126. 4. 548–562. 10.11646/zootaxa.4126.4.6. 27395605. 1175-5334.
6. D. . Makhan . 2007 . Helobata soesilae sp. nov. and Helobata aschnakiranae sp. nov. from Suriname (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae) . Calodema Supplementary Paper . 14 . 1–3.
7. Mauricio . García . Tres nuevas especies de Helobata Bergroth 1888 (Hydrophilidae: Hydrophilinae) de Venezuela . Boletín del Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas . 34 . 2 . 2000 . 237–246 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304072446/http://200.74.222.178/index.php/boletin/article/viewFile/201/201 . March 4, 2016 . Spanish . dead .
8. L. A. . Fernández . A. O. . Bachmann . 1987 . Revisión del género Helobata Bergroth (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae) . Revista de la Sociedad Entomológica Argentina . 44 . 2 . 149–159 . Spanish.
9. Bruch. C.. 1915. Nuevas especies de coleópteros hidrofílidos. Revista del Museo de La Plata. 19. 447–470.
10. Horn. G. H.. 1873. Revision of the genera and species of the tribe Hydrobiini. Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society. 13. 90. 118–137. 981607.