Diochus schaumii Kraatz 1860: 27

Frank, J. H., Kelly, S. L. & Almquist, D. T., 2014, Notes on Diochus Erichson, Lissohypnus Casey, and Oxybleptes Smetana (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) in Florida, including a description of a new species of Lissohypnus, Insecta Mundi 2014 (382), pp. 1-8 : 6-7

Diochus schaumii Kraatz 1860: 27

Diochus schaumii Kraatz is the single species of Diochus recognized by Smetana (1982) among all 862 specimens that he examined in collections made in America north of Mexico. He placed three Casey (1906) species names ( D. brevipennis , D. thoracicus and D. pallidiceps) as synonyms after examination of their type material in the Casey collection in the United States National Museum. He recognized a difference in specimens from the southern part of the distributional range (especially Florida and Georgia) in that they are uniformly testaceous, with the elytra very short and the wings micropterous, but found them to be conspecific.

It should not be supposed that pale specimens with short elytra are typical for Florida. All but one of the Florida specimens that we examined in JHFC (Alachua, Dade, Glades, Highlands, Indian River , Leon, Palm Beach, St. Lucie, Sarasota, Taylor and Walton counties) UCFC (Orange County) and FSCA (Baker and Marion counties) are of the normal dark form with elytra of normal length. One specimen in UCFC is of the normal dark color but is micropterous and with short elytra ; it is labeled UCF, Orlando, Orange Co. FL, VIII-27-1997 / LLP/ Sand Pine Turkey Oak, Pitfall Trap / S. M. Fullerton Collector ( UCFC 0 173 591). In addition, a specimen was borrowed by SHK from the Archbold Biological Station Collection near Lake Placid , by courtesy of Mark Deyrup ; it is pale, micropterous, and with short elytra and is labeled: Archbold Biol. Sta., Lk. Placid, Highlands Co., FLA., 14 Jan. 1984, M. Deyrup / OAK LITTER, E. SIDE 18 E, RSh .

Smetana (1977, 1982) used the spelling D. schaumi , which differs from the original spelling as “ schaumii ” by Kraatz (1860: 27), although ICZN (1999 article 33.4) states that original spellings with termination –ii are to be retained, not changed to –i.