Lathrobium bodemeyeri Bernhauer, 1903

(Figs. 19−34; Map 1)

Lathrobium paphlagonicum Assing, 2001 syn. n.

Types examined: ♂: “ ASIA MINOR, GOEK-DAGH, v. BODEMEYER / bodemeyeri Bernh. Type / Dr.M. Bernhauer donavit 10.IX.1942 / Typus Lathrobium bodemeyeri Bernhauer / Lectotypus ♂, Lathrobium bodemeyeri Bernhauer, desig. V. Assing 2001 ” (NHMW) . ♂: “Anat. b., Cangal Dagh, 7-15.6.60, leg. F. Schubert / Holotypus ♂ Lathrobium paphlagonicum sp. n. det. V. Assing ” (NHMW) .

Additional material examined: Turkey: Bartın: 1♂, 2♀, 07.IV.2021, Ulus, Uluyayla, 41°32’24’’N, 32°48’16’’E, 1000 m, leg. Örgel, Kacar & Çelik (AZMM) . Bolu: 2♂, 1♀, 18.IV.2013, Mudurnu, Sülüklü Göl road, leg. Kunt (AZMM) . 3♂, 2♀, 03.VII.2020, Mudurnu, Ekinören 4 km NE, 40°33’27’’N, 31°04’50’’E, 830 m, leg. Örgel & Kacar (AZMM) . 2♂, 1♀, 05.IV.2021, Mengen, Köprübaşı 5 km N, 40°57’16’’N, 31°51’57’’E, 775 m, leg. Örgel, Kacar & Çelik (AZMM) . 1♂, Yedigöller, 14.V.1987, leg. Schönmann & Schillhammer, L. bodemeyeri V. Assing det. 2001 (NHMW) . Çorum: 1♂, 22.VI.2020, Kargı, Tepelice 3 km W, 41°12’41’’N, 34°27’30’’E, 1870 m, leg. Örgel & Kacar (AZMM) . Düzce: 1♂, 1♀, 01.VII.2021, Kaynaşlı, Biçkıyanı 5 km N, 40°40’39’’N, 31°22’21’’E, 1200 m, leg. Kacar & Çelik (AZMM) . Eskişehir: 1♀, Bodemeyer, Asia-minor, Bos Dagh (=Sündiken Dağları) L. bodemeyeri V. Assing det. 2001 (NHMW) . 1♂, 12.III.2018, Sündiken Dağları, 39°59’26”N, 31°00’47”E, 1253 m, leg. Örgel & Yaman (AZMM) . 2♀, 21.VI.2016, Sarıcakaya, 40°02’38”N, 30°53’43”E, 336 m, MSS trap (AZMM) . Karabük: 1♂, 1♀, 06.IV.2021, Eskipazar, Sallar 1 km SW, 40°57’41’’N, 32°45’44’’E, 1277 m, leg. Örgel, Kacar & Çelik (AZMM) . Kastamonu: 6♂, 3♀, 06.V.2021, Azdavay, Topuk 3 km W, 41°41’01’’N, 33°21’00’’E, 1010 m, leg. Örgel, Kacar & Çelik (AZMM) . 1♂, 2♀, 10.VII.2020, Pınarbaşı, Uzla 4 km NW, 41°43’12’’N, 32°56’36’’E, 815 m, leg. Örgel & Kacar (AZMM) . Sakarya: 1♂, Goek Dagh, leg. v. Bodemeyer, L. bodemeyeri V. Assing det. 2001 (NHMW) . 1♀, klein-Asien, Goek Dagh, leg. Bodemeyer, coll. J. Fodor (cotype) (NMPC) . 1♀, klein-Asien, Goek Dagh, leg. Bodemeyer, coll. Rambousek (det. C. Koch as L. elangatulum Kraatz) (NMPC) . 3♂, 4♀, 01.VII.2021, Akyazı, Boztepe 5 km N, 40°30‘38‘‘N, 30°41‘44‘‘E, 1058 m, leg. Kacar & Çelik (AZMM) . 3♂, 6♀, 01.VII.2021, Akyazı, Boztepe 5 km NE, 40°31’07’’N, 30°42’32’’E, 1010 m, leg. Kacar & Çelik (AZMM) .

Sinop: 1♀, 19.V.2014, Tıngıroğlu village, 41°47’32”N, 35°00’12”E, leg. Koç (AZMM) . 3♂, 3♀, 23.VI.2020, Ayancık, Kurtköy 5 km W, Çangal Dağları, 41°47’29’’N, 34°44’23’’E, 1100 m, leg. Örgel & Kacar (AZMM) .

Zonguldak: 1♂, 1♀, 08.IV.2021, Ayvatlar 2 km SW, 41°17’54’’N, 31°49’19’’E, 364 m, leg. Örgel, Kacar & Çelik. Doubtful record: Hatay: 1♂, 16.IV.1966, Arsuz (Hatay), Kompost, Türkei-Exped. 1966, Naturhist. Mus. Wien, wahrscheinlich Fundortsverwechslung, Lathrobium bodemeyeri Bernhauer det. V. Assing 2002.

Remarks: Bernhauer (1903) described this species based on an unspecified number of syntypes from Goek Dagh (Gökdağ, Samanlı Dağları, Sapanca, Sakarya) in Turkey.A lectotype of this species was designated by Assing (2001) who also provided illustrations. This species is widely distributed in Northwestern Anatolia. The original description of L. paphlagonicum is based on a male holotype, and a male and female paratype from Cangal Dagh (Çangal Mountains) in Sinop province, Turkey (Assing, 2001). Later, Assing (2004, 2009, 2011) recorded this species from several localities in Sinop and Kastamonu provinces. I studied the type specimens of L. bodemeyeri and L. paphlagonicum in the collections of the NHMW during a visit in 2021 (Figs 19−34).

Accoding to Assing (2001), L. paphlagonicum is distinguished from L. bodemeyeri by the larger body ( L. paphlagonicum, 5.4−6.3 mm long; L. bodemeyeri, on avarage 6.0 mm long), by the different shape of pronotum in dorsal view ( L. paphlagonicum, lateral margins weakly concave a short distance before middle; L. bodemeyeri, lateral margins mostly straight or weakly convex), by the much finer punctation on the abdomen, by the abdomen more distinctly darker than forebody and by the different shape of the aedeagus ( L. paphlagonicum, in lateral view with ventral process weakly and smoothly bent, dorso-apical sclerite in lateral view wider; L. bodemeyeri, in lateral view with ventral process more distinctly and more abruptly bent, dorso-apical sclerite in lateral view narrow).

An examination of material from various localities of the distribution revealed that both external (Figs 35−46) and aedeagal characters (Figs 47−64) of L. bodemeyeri are subject to remarkable intraspecific variation and overlap with those of L. paphlagonicum . Consequently, there is little doubt that L. paphlagonicum is conspecific with L. bodemeyeri . Thus, L. paphlagonicum is here proposed as a synonym of L. bodemeyeri .

L. bodemeyeri is known from Bartın, Bolu, Çorum, Düzce, Eskişehir, Karabük, Kastamonu, Sakarya, Zonguldak provinces in Turkey (Bernhauer, 1903; Bordoni, 1980, Assing & Schülke, 2000; Assing, 2001, 2004, 2011, 2013, 2014; Anlaş, 2018 and present paper). It seems that this species is confined to northwestern and central western Anatolia. The species has also been recorded from Greece (Makhedonia, W Kilkis, Metallikon, 20.III.1978, leg. Heinz) by Assing (2001) and from Hatay province in the southest Anatolia (see in the additional material examined).

The record in Greece is situated 650 km to the nearest Turkish locality (Sakarya province). Thus, this species was recorded far outside of its known distribution in Turkey. Despite the extensive field studies I have carried out, L. bodemeyeri has never been recorded from further west of Sakarya province in Turkey, so this record seems doubtful. In the same way, since the record from Hatay province is far outside the known distribution, it requires confirmation. The most likely explanation for the records is that the specimens were mislabeled. It has been observed for material collected by Heinz before (for a precedent see the section on Leptobium syriacum (Saulcy) in Assing (2017)). The collector was in Turkey in the same year. Thus, L. bodemeyeri should be removed from the list of Greek Lathrobium .