British Insects: the Families of Coleoptera |
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~Curculionidae.
General appearance. 5–8 mm long. Body length/maximum body width 2.5–4.15. Elytral length/pronotal length 1.6–2.45. Base of prothorax not or scarcely narrower than the combined elytral bases. Greatest prothoracic width not narrower or only slightly narrower than the greatest elytral width. Beetles elongate; cylindric; not necked; conspicuously waisted. Upper surfaces of body glabrous or subglabrous, or non-glabrous; not bristly; with neither scales nor scale-like setae.
Detailed morphology. Beetles without a rostrum. Inclination of the head strong to very strong. Eyes not strongly protuberant; without bristles; finely facetted. Antennae very short; conspicuously elbowed; 6 segmented; with the scape much-elongated; clubbed. Antennal clubs 3 segmented, or 4 segmented. Antennal insertions visible from above, or hidden from above; not in fossae. Mandibular prosthecae absent.
Pronotal length/maximum pronotal width 1.05–1.67. Prothorax without notopleural sutures. Metaventrite without a transverse groove. The tarsi without bilobed segments; without hidden segments (the third segment not being bilobed and the fourth small but clearly visible; tarsi usually long, the basal segment longer than the others put together). Mid-leg tarsi 5-segmented; pentamerous. Claws of the mid-leg tarsi not appendaged. Front tarsi with as many segments as the mid-tarsi; 5-segmented. Hind tarsi with as many segments as the mid-tarsi; 5-segmented. Elytral length/maximum width across the elytra 1.55–2.95. Elytra exposing no more than part of the terminal tergite. Scutellary striole absent. Wings well developed.
Visible abdominal sternites 5; immovably joined 0. Abdominal segment 8 apparently without functional spiracles.
Habitat, ecology. In living vegetation (in oak, beech, ash).
Classification. Suborder Polyphaga; Superfamily Curculionoidea.
British representation. Genera 1; 2 species. E.g., Platypus cylindrus (Cylindric Ambrosia Beetle).
Illustrations. • Platypus cylindrus (Cylindric Ambrosia-beetle: bent051). • Platypus cylindrus (details, B. Ent. 051). • Platypus cylindrus: B. Ent. 051, legend+text.
To view the illustrations with detailed captions, go to the interactive key. This also offers full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting or lacking specified attributes, and distributions of character states within any set of taxa.
Cite this publication as: ‘Watson, L., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2003 onwards. British insects: the families of Coleoptera. Version: 9th June 2008. http://delta-intkey.com’.