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Issue: Vol. 5715 No. 1: 28 Oct. 2025
Type: Article
Published: 2025-10-28
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5715.1.6
Page range: 41-52
Abstract views: 105
PDF downloaded: 10

Rare full-body imprint of the giant Asiocoleidae (Coleoptera: Archostemata) from the Lower Triassic sheds light on the morphology of the family

Department of Entomology; Faculty of Biology; Lomonosov Moscow State University; Leninskie gory 1–12; Moscow; 119192; Russia
Borissak Paleontological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Profsoyuznaya str. 123; Moscow 117647; Russia
Borissak Paleontological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Profsoyuznaya str. 123; Moscow 117647; Russia
Borissak Paleontological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Profsoyuznaya str. 123; Moscow 117647; Russia
Coleoptera beetles new taxa Anakitium morphology Tunguska basin Bugarikhta Formation

Abstract

Anakitium storozhenkoi Arakelyan & Yan, gen. et sp. nov. of the family Asiocoleidae (Coleoptera: Archostemata) was discovered in the Tunguska coal basin at the Anakit-3 locality (Lower Triassic; Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia). The holotype shows a well-preserved full-body imprint with partially visible dorsal and nearly complete ventral aspects. Previous well-preserved complete specimens of this family are known only from the Jurassic. The general body structure of Anakitium storozhenkoi is in many ways similar to later Archostemata, including recent Cupedidae and Ommatidae, while the elytral structure exhibits several unique and likely ancestral characters. Discovery of Anakitium provides new insights into the morphology of Asiocoleidae, which was previously known mainly from isolated elytra. The taxonomic placement of A. storozhenkoi and certain genera within Asiocoleidae is discussed.

 

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How to Cite

Arakelyan, S.A., Strelnikova, O.D., Felker, A.S. & Yan, E.V. (2025) Rare full-body imprint of the giant Asiocoleidae (Coleoptera: Archostemata) from the Lower Triassic sheds light on the morphology of the family. Zootaxa, 5715 (1), 41–52. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5715.1.6