Aenictobia thoi Kistner

Maruyama, Munetoshi, Matsumoto, Takashi & Itioka, Takao, 2011, Rove beetles (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) associated with Aenictus laeviceps (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Sarawak, Malaysia: Strict host specificity, and first myrmecoid Aleocharini, Zootaxa 3102, pp. 1-26 : 9

Aenictobia thoi Kistner

(Figs. 26–28)

Aenictobia thoi Kistner & Jacobson, 1975: 45 (original description). Kistner et al. 1997: 175 (redescription).

Materials examined. 11, Lambir Hills National Park, Sarawak, Malaysia, 16 IV 2004, T. Matsumoto leg. (no. 325); 2, same data but 13 IV 2004 (no. 340); 4, ditto, 16 IV 2004 (no. 348); 3, ditto, 10 V 2004 (no. 354); 1, ditto, 12 V 2004 (no. 368); 2, ditto, 11 V 2004 (no. 371); 1, ditto, 11 V 2004 (no. 382); 6, ditto, 7 X 2004 (no. 413); 3, ditto, 19 V 2004 (no. 428); 1, ditto, 4 XI 2004 (no. 515); 2, ditto, 30 X 2004 (no. 542); 3, ditto, 20 X 2004 (no. 555); 4, ditto, 29 X 2004 (no. 574); 1, ditto, 25 II 2005 (no. 601); 1, ditto, 25 II 2005 (602); 3, ditto, 20 IV 2005 (701); 12, ditto, 25 IV 2005 (711); 20, ditto, 26 IV 2005 (718); 10, ditto, 9 XI 2005 (no. 801); 1, ditto, 9 XI 2005 (no. 803); 5, ditto, 10 XI 2005 (no. 804). See, Table 1 for detailed collecting data.

Symbiotic host. Morphotypes L1 and L2 of Aenictus laeviceps .

Distribution. Malaysia (Peninsula, Borneo), Indonesia (Sumatra).

Diagnosis. This species can be distinguished from Aenictobia fergusoni by the temples of head (Figs. 26, 27) being weakly convex, by the more slender antennae (Fig. 26), by the antennal segment I (Fig. 27) being about 2.5 times as long as wide, by the postero-lateral corner of the pronotum (Fig. 27) being not projected, but almost right angled, and by the setae on the pronotum and elytra (Fig. 28) being somewhat sparser and shorter.

Comments. This species was originally described based on specimens from Ulu Gombak, Peninsular Malaysia and recorded from Sumatra and Sabah.

No morphological differences were detected between populations from Lambir Hills National Park and Ulu Gombak.