Tenebrioninae

Tenebrioninae
Blaps mortisaga of tribe Blaptini
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Tenebrionidae
Subfamily: Tenebrioninae
Latreille, 1802
Tribes

Around 20-30, see text

Tenebrioninae are a large subfamily of the darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae), containing, among others, the flour beetles.

Many of these robust and usually mid-sized beetles have elytra with some sort of corrugation on the upperside. They are usually colored blackish, dark brown or grey, and often have a satiny sheen; they are generally not glossy (some are outright matte) and few are metallic. The body is shaped like a medication capsule or like a bullet; the legs can be short and stout or long and spindly. They eat both fresh and decaying vegetation, including vegetable produce, and several are commercially important pests of flour and other cereal products.

Tenebrioninae are eaten by large invertebrates and small vertebrates, such as birds, rodents, and lizards. The larval stages of several species are cultured as feeder insects for captive insectivores, and include mealworms and mini mealworms.

Notable species

Larvae of Alphitobius laevigatus (Alphitobiini)

The mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor) is commonly used as food for terrestrial amniotes kept in terraria. Other Tenebrio and Tribolium species are also bred as animal food. The red flour beetle (Tribolium castaneum) is a popular genetics laboratory animal and model organism, especially in studies of intragenomic conflict and population ecology. Several species of Tenebrio and Tribolium, such as the confused flour beetle (T. confusum) and T. destructor, and other genera such as Gnathocerus cornutus, are pests of cereal and flour silos and other storage facilities.

Systematics

Amarygmini: Plesiophthalmus nigrocyaneus
Blaptini: Blaps cf. mucronata
Bolitophagini: Bolitophagus reticulatus
Mimopeus parvus
Helopini: Stenomax aeneus
Scaphidemini: Scaphidema metallicum
Ulomini: Uloma culinaris

The Tenebrioninae are traditionally divided in some 20-30 tribes. The exact delimitation and validity of several of these is unclear. Molecular phylogenetic studies have yielded inconsistent results, perhaps due to hybridization, horizontal gene transfer by Wolbachia bacteria, and insufficient taxon sampling obfuscating the information contained in DNA sequence data.[1][2]

In some treatments, the Pimeliinae are included as yet another tribe. This may be correct, but as far as can be told they are a closely related but well distinct lineage of Tenebrionidae. The Opatrini are sometimes elevated to familial rank as Opatrinae. The Crypticini, Pentaphyllini, and Scaphidemini are sometimes placed here, but are more commonly located in the Diaperinae.[1][2]

The tribes (and some notable genera) include:

Acropteronini (disputed)
Alphitobiini Reitter, 1917 (sometimes in Triboliini)

  • Alphitobius Stephens, 1829
  • Diaclina Jacquelin du Val 1861

Amarygmini

  • Amarygmus
  • Plesiophthalmus

Apocryphini (disputed)
Blaptini Leach, 1815

  • Blaps Fabricius, 1775
  • Gnaptor Brullé 1832
  • Gnaptorina Reitter, 1887
  • Prosodes Eschscholtz 1829
  • Tagona Fischer von Waldheim 1822

Bolitophagini Kirby, 1837

  • Atasthalomorpha
  • Bolitotherus Candeze, 1861
  • Bolitoxenus
  • Bolitophagus Illiger 1798
  • Byrsax
  • Eledona Latreille 1796
  • Eledonoprius Reitter 19116

Centronopini (disputed)
Cerenopini (disputed)

Dendarini Espanol, 1945 (sometimes in Pedinini)

  • Bioplanes Mulsant 1854
  • Dendarus Latreille 1829
  • Heliopathes Mulsant 1854
  • Isocerus Latreille 1829
  • Micrositus Mulsant & Rey 1854
  • Phylan Dejean, 1821

Dissonomini (disputed)
Eulabini (disputed)
Heleini

  • Mimopeus

Helopini Latreille, 1802

  • Allardius
  • Catomus
  • Cylindronotus Faldermann, 1837
  • Enoplopus
  • Entomogonus
  • Erionura
  • Euboeus
  • Gunarus
  • Hedyphanes
  • Helopelius
  • Helops
  • Italohelops
  • Misolampus
  • Nalassus Mulsant, 1854
  • Nephodinus
  • Nesotes
  • Odocnemis
  • Probaticus
  • Pseudoprobaticus
  • Raiboscelis
  • Stenohelops
  • Stenomax Allard, 1876
  • Xanthomus

Helopinini (disputed)
Heterotarsini LeConte, 1862 (disputed)

  • Heterotarsus

Leichenini Leng, 1920 (disputed)

  • Leichenum

Melanimini
Nycteropini

Opatrini Brullé, 1832

Palorini Matthews, 2003

  • Astalbus
  • Austropalorus
  • Eutermicola
  • Palorinus
  • Palorus
  • Platycotylus
  • Prolabrus
  • Pseudeba
  • Ulomotypus

Pedinini Eschscholtz, 1829

  • Pedinus Latreille, 1796

Platyscelidini Lacordaire, 1859

  • Bioramix
  • Oodescelis Motschulsky, 1845

Praeugenini (disputed)
Rhyssopausini (disputed)
Scaurini (disputed)
Scotobiini (disputed)

Tenebrionini Latreille, 1802 (including Biuini)

  • Bius Dejean, 1834
  • Cryphaeus Klug 1833
  • Encyalesthus
  • Iphthiminus Spilman 1973
  • Menephilus Mulsant 1854
  • Neatus Le Conte, 1862
  • Tenebrio Linnaeus, 1758
  • Upis

Titaenini

  • Artystona
  • Callismilax
  • Cerodolus
  • Demtrius
  • Leaus
  • Partystona
  • Pseudhelops
  • Titaena

Toxicini Lacordaire, 1859

  • Calymmus
  • Cryphaeus
  • Cylindrosia
  • Diceroderes
  • Dysantes
  • Ilyxerus
  • Mychestes
  • Orcopagia
  • Ozolais
  • Phloeopsidius
  • Taiwanocryphaeus
  • Toxicum
  • Wattius

Triboliini Mulsant, 1854 (sometimes in Ulomini)

  • Aesymnus
  • Erelus Mulsant & Rey 1853 (tentatively placed here)
  • Latheticus Waterhouse, 1880
  • Lyphia
  • Martianus Fairmaire, 1893 (tentatively placed here)
  • Metulosonia
  • Mycotrogus
  • Palorus Mulsant, 1854
  • Tharsus
  • Tribolium Macleay, 1825 (probably paraphyletic)[1]
  • Ulosonia

Ulomini Blanchard, 1845

  • Gnathocerus
  • Pelleas Bates 1872
  • Uloma Dejean, 1821
  • Ulomina Baudi 1876 (sometimes in Palorini)

In addition, the genus Aphtora is of uncertain placement in this subfamily.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Angelini, D. R. & E. L. Jockusch. (2008). Relationships among pest flour beetles of the genus Tribolium (Tenebrionidae) inferred from multiple molecular markers. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 46(1) 127-41. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2007.08.017 (HTML abstract)
  2. 1 2 Bouchard, P., et al. (2005). Synoptic classification of the world Tenebrionidae (Insecta: Coleoptera) with a review of family-group names. Annales Zoologici 55(4) 499-530. PDF full text
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