Paratorchus MCCOLL, 1985

Irmler, Ulrich, 2015, New Neotropical genera and species of the tribe Osoriini (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Osoriinae), Beiträge Zur Entomologie = Contributions to Entomology 65 (1), pp. 173-196 : 176

Paratorchus MCCOLL, 1985

The referring species from New Zealand were described under the generic name Paratrochus MCCOLL, 1982 . As Paratrochus was preoccupied, MCCOLL (1985) later renamed the genus to Paratorchus MCCOLL, 1985 . However, the definition of the genus was vague and a comparison with Holotrochus or related genera was not made. MCCOLL (1982) defined Paratorchus by reduced eyes with one to ten omatidia and reduced elytra that are shorter than the pronotum and much wider than long. Furthermore, sutural striae are sometimes absent, shoulders prominent, and abdominal pubescence variable.

FAGEL (1955) described two African genera that are also characterised by absence of sutural striae, i.e. Holotrochoposis FAGEL, 1955 and Holotrochomorphus FAGEL, 1955 . Both genera are additionally characterised by distinct pubescence. Some species of Holotrochomorphus FAGEL, 1955 have reduced elytra (FAGEL, 1958) but never as short as in Paratorchus MCCOLL, 1985 .

Similar species from the Neotropics were described under a specific group of the genus Holotrochus by IRMLER (1981, 1987, 2005), but included all species with reduced eyes independent of the elytral length. The recent finding of a new species from Mexico shows that species with reduced eyes and elytra and indistinct sutural striae are widely spread in the Neotropics and can be separated from Holotrochus not only by reduced eyes but also by the absence or reduction of the sutural striae.

Therefore, species with these characters will be transferred to Paratorchus MCCOLL, 1985 . Regarding the Neotropical species, Paratorchus is separated from Holotrochus by reduced eyes with one to twenty omatidae, reduced elytra that are much wider than long,