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Tag Archives: Bembidion
Hiding in Plain Sight
In most groups of organisms there are taxa that are very isolated phylogenetically, and are structurally so distinctive that they are easy to recognize (the Australian platypus and Welwitschia mirabilis come to mind). Some of these isolated taxa are considered to … Continue reading
Posted in Revising Bembidiina, Taxonomic Process
Tagged Bembidion, DNA taxonomy, taxonomy, wickhami
4 Comments
Two lineages, not one
I’m back, after a long hiatus. We’ve been busy in the lab looking at the specimens from the Big Loop Trip, and sequencing them. Over the next few weeks I will report on some of the results. We’ve discovered some … Continue reading
Posted in Revising Bembidiina
Tagged aedeagus, Bembidion, morphology, Ocydromus, Peryphus
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A new lineage of Bembidion?
On my recent field trip around the west, something occurred that has never happened to me before in North America: I knew, in the field, that I had found a previously undiscovered species. This has happened to me in South … Continue reading
Posted in Fieldwork, Revising Bembidiina, Taxonomic Process
Tagged Bembidion, new species, Ocydromus, talus, undescribed species
9 Comments
Follow-up to “What should I name this beetle?”
In my post “What should I name this beetle?”, I discussed a pretty, spotted beetle species that lives in the Sierra Nevadas of California and which lacks a name. I’ve recently been in discussion with Don Cameron, an arachnologist and … Continue reading
The Bembidion ulkei mystery: solved
In an earlier post, I discussed the mystery of Bembidion ulkei. Here’s a quick summary: according to Lindroth’s (1963) study, Bembidion obscuripenne is a widespread species in the west, from California north to Washington. In contrast, Lindroth knew B. ulkei only … Continue reading
Posted in Revising Bembidiina, Taxonomic Process
Tagged Bembidion, nomenclature, taxonomy
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What should I name this beetle?
Along some creek and pond shores in the Sierra Nevada of California there lives a pretty, spotted Bembidion, and this Bembidion has no name. It belongs to the subgenus Liocosmius, a group of Bembidion that range from BC to Baja … Continue reading
Posted in Revising Bembidiina, Taxonomic Process
Tagged Bembidion, Liocosmius, nomenclature
9 Comments
Names approved!
In two earlier posts, I wrote about the dangers of naming species after the name of the first peoples of an area, as well as the concerns about using a word from a native language. In the first of those … Continue reading
More hidden species in Bembidion: a multiplicity of “Bembidion kuprianovi”
In Lindroth’s magnificent 1963 treatment of Bembidion of Canada and Alaska (and the northern contiguous States), he notes the extent of structural variation within species. Some species he notes to be relatively uniform, others more variable. As I delve into … Continue reading
Posted in Revising Bembidiina, Taxonomic Process
Tagged Bembidion, Plataphus, species delimitation
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Four?
In western North America small, dark Bembidion (Plataphus) are common on gravel river shores. Most of these are called Bembidion curtulatum. They are the smallest members of subgenus Plataphus (sensu Lindroth) in North America, at about 3.5 mm long. As … Continue reading
Posted in Revising Bembidiina, Taxonomic Process
Tagged Bembidion, DNA taxonomy, Plataphus
1 Comment
BotW: Bembidion bowditchii
The beetle of the week is a very elegant species, Bembidion bowditchii, which lives in western North America. It is rarely caught, but not uncommon in the right habitats: broad sandy shorelines of rivers. It is abundant on the Kootenay River near … Continue reading
David Maddison