Origin and early diversification of a high Andean rove-beetle clade: Corisantis gen. nov., phylogeny, and historical biogeography

Abstract

A new genus, Corisantisgen. nov., within the Andean clade (AC) of the rove-beetle subtribe Philonthina, is described and illustrated, including 14 species. This new genus comprises six valid species formerly assigned to Belonuchus Nordmann (B. candens (Erichson, 1840) and B. pulchripennisBernhauer, 1908) and Philonthus (Ph. auripennis Bernhauer, 1916, Ph. caliensis Bernhauer, 1916, Ph. excellens Bernhauer, 1916, and Ph. whymperiSharp, 1891), along with nine newly described species: C. ancashensissp. nov., C. bongarensissp. nov., C. cajamarcanussp. nov., C. columbiensissp. nov., C. ecuatoriensissp. nov., C. grandissp. nov., C. levissp. nov., C. magdalensissp. nov., and C. napoensissp. nov. The four species originally classified under Philonthus are reassigned to Corisantis with the following new combinations: C. auripennis (Bernhauer, 1916) comb. nov., C. caliensis (Bernhauer, 1916) comb. nov., C. excellens (Bernhauer, 1916) comb. nov., and C. whymperi (Sharp, 1891) comb. nov. Additionally, Belonuchus pulchripennis is synonymized under Belonuchus candens (= B. pulchripennissyn. nov.), which is also transferred to Corisantis as C. candens (Erichson, 1840) comb. nov. Lectotypes are designated for B. pulchripennisBernhauer (1908), Philonthus candensErichson (1840) and Philonthus whymperiSharp (1891). This study provides diagnoses, redescriptions or descriptions, illustrations, a distribution map, and an identification key for the species of Corisantis. Phylogenetic analyses, employing three methodologies—Maximum Parsimony, Maximum Likelihood, and Bayesian Inference—consistently support the monophyly of Corisantis and confirm its sister-group relationship with Leptopeltoides Chani-Posse and Asenjo, with both genera being sister to Leptopeltus Bernhauer. Additionally, biogeographical analyses using two methodologies—BBM (Bayesian Binary MCMC) and S-DIVA (Statistical Dispersal-Vicariance Analysis)—suggest that the South American Transition Zone was the center of origin and early diversification for these three genera.