Abstract
The Bostrichidae of the Maltese Islands are reviewed. Ten species are recorded with certainty from this Archipelago, of which 6 namely, Trogoxylon impressum (Comolli, 1837), Amphicerus bimaculatus (A.G. Olivier, 1790), Heterobostrychus aequalis (Waterhouse, 1884), Sinoxylon unidentatum (Fabricius, 1801), Xyloperthella picea (A.G. Olivier, 1790) and Apate monachus Fabricius, 1775 are recorded for the first time. Two of the mentioned species (Heterobostrychus aequalis and Sinoxylon unidentatum) are alien and recorded only on the basis of single captures and the possible establishment of these species is discussed. Earlier records of Scobicia pustulata (Fabricius, 1801) from Malta are incorrect and should be attributed to Scobicia chevrieri (A. Villa & J.B. Villa, 1835). A zoogeographical analysis and an updated checklist of the 12 species of Bostrichidae recorded from the Maltese Islands and neigbouring Sicilian islands (Pantelleria, Linosa and Lampedusa) are also provided.Rhizopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792) form granulipennis Lesne in Beeson & Bhatia, 1937 from Uttarakhand (northern India) was overlooked by almost all subsequent authors. Its history is summarized and the following new synonymy is established: Rhizopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792) form granulipennis Lesne in Beeson & Bhatia, 1937 = Rhyzopertha dominica (Fabricius, 1792), syn. n.Finally, records of Amphicerus bimaculatus from Azerbaijan, of Bostrichus capucinus (Linnaeus, 1758) from Jordan and Syria, of Scobicia chevrieri from Jordan and Italy, of Xyloperthella picea from Italy, and of Apate monachus from Corsica (France) and Italy, are also provided.
Highlights
The larvae of most species of this family are wood borers, and as other saproxylic organisms they play an important role in the decomposition processes
New data on Maltese Bostrichidae emerged from recent studies carried out on collections made from the Maltese Islands, the results of which are included in the present work
12 species are known: 4 from Pantelleria, 1 from Linosa, 1 from Gozo, 9 from Malta and 1 from Lampedusa; and only Scobica chevrieri is recorded from four islands
Summary
The larvae of most species of this family are wood borers, and as other saproxylic organisms they play an important role in the decomposition processes They are significant for nutrient cycling in natural and semi-natural ecosystems, forests (cf Stokland et al 2012). Several other species are pests of living trees and vines, a few species are store product pests attacking commodities such as grain and tubers These beetles are frequently transported between countries, especially in wood packing materials such as crating and dunnage, and are often intercepted at ports and cargo distribution centres (cf Haack and Slansky 1987, Geis 2002, Ivie 2002, Haack 2006, Liu et al 2006, Bahillo de la Puebla et al 2007, Liu et al 2008, Lawrence 2010). New data on Maltese Bostrichidae emerged from recent studies carried out on collections made from the Maltese Islands, the results of which are included in the present work
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