Agabus rufulus Fairmaire 1859: 272

Millán, Andrés & Ribera, Ignacio, 2001, The Agabus (Gaurodytes) Brunneus Group, With Description Of A New Species From The Western Mediterranean (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae), The Coleopterists Bulletin 55 (1), pp. 107-112 : 109

Agabus rufulus Fairmaire 1859: 272

One male of A. rufulus without locality data in Fairmaire’s collection in the Musée National d’Histoire Naturelle (Paris) (MNHN) and several specimens from Corsica (the type locality) were studied. Additional Corsican material from the collections of the NHM and the authors’ collection was also studied. Although the external morphology does not allow an unequivocal identification of the species, being most similar to A. ramblae , the aedeagus of all studied males is consistently different from both A. brunneus and A. ramblae ( Figs. 3–4 ). We consider it to be a distinct species. Some of the material identified as A. rufulus from France, Italy or north Africa, based on which most of the authors considered it to be at most a variety of A. brunneus without taxonomic relevance (e.g., Guignot 1933; Franciscolo 1979), is most likely to correspond either to A. brunneus or A. ramblae . However, the precise distribution of all three species is still unknown.

Two of the species previously considered to be synonyms of A. brunneus (e.g. Guignot 1933) are likely to correspond to A. rufulus , although because of the lack of males among the type material there is still some uncertainty about their identity. 1. Agabus marginicollis Fairmaire 1860: 631 . Types of this species (which

was described from Corsica) were not found in Fairmaire’s collection

(MNHN). Some specimens identified as A. marginicollis in Régimbart’s

collection (MNHN) from Spain and Algeria were studied and found to

correspond to A. brunneus , and one male from Corte ( Corsica) to A. rufulus . 4. Agabus rotundatus Wehncke 1872: 136 . The only type material of these

species that we were able to study was a syntype female from the Deutsches

Entomologisches Institut (Eberswalde) (DEI) labelled ‘‘collaris Dahl, Sar­

din. Dahl,’’ small blue label, ‘‘ rotundatus Wehncke , n.sp. Original, 2he Ex­

eml. an Wehncke gegeben’’ [a second specimen given to Wehncke], ‘‘43,’’

‘‘Seidl. Vid’’ [Seidlitz vidit], ‘‘ rotundatus Wehncke ,’’ ‘‘Syntypus’’ [red la­

bel].

Figures

Figs. 1–6. Aedeagus of Agabus brunneus 1) lateral view; 2) dorsal view; A. rufulus 3) lateral view; 4) dorsal view; and A. ramblae 5) lateral view; 6) dorsal view; (traced from photographs).