|
Phryganophilus ruficollis
Rothalsiger Düsterkäfer
|
|
Subspecies
Original description
Fabricius, 1789
Synonyms
Identification
Distribution
The species occurs
throughout northern and Central Europe and east to Siberia and Japan.
However, the species is extremely rare and is regarded as one of the
rarest beetle species of Europe. Only very few (sometimes only a
single) records exist for each the following countries: Russia, Japan,
France, Austria, Germany, Czech Republic, Poland, Sweden, Finnland,
Latvia, Ukraine, Romania, Slovenia, Croatia, Greece. In Germany the
species is only recorded from Bayern. Only 5 confirmed finds are
recorded all of which date to before 1939. The species has therefore
been regarded extinct in Germany. However, Fuchs and Bußler
report a recent find from 1999 in the Wetterstein mountains near
Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Bayern (Fuchs and Bußler 2010).
Biology
The species is considered to be boreoalpine. It is dependent on
primeval forests which could explain why it is so rare. The larvae of
this species live in coarse woody debris, mainly of oak, beech, birch
and spruce. There also are reports of larvae in aspen. The larvae live
directly below the bark in the softer parts of the decaying wood. They
feed on different fungi species (e.g. Trametes, Polyporus, Fomitopsis).
Larval development lasts for about 2 to 3 years. The larva thus
overwinters several times and the pupa overwinters as well. The imago
then ecloses in spring or early summer. The exact phenology is unclear
due to the low number of records. However, the records in Sweden are
between Mai and June, whereas in Germany the imago has been found from
June to Juli. Imagines apparently are shortlived (one to two weeks) and
only live until they have found a suitable habitat for their progeny.
The search flight of the imagines for new decaying wood is probably
dependent on high temperatures and dry, sunny weather, because most
imagines have been collected on very hot summer days.
The species is protected by special law in the European Union and thus
the protection of the species and the conservation of its habitats is
defined as a matter of public interest.
|
This page has been
updated on July 7, 2010
This site is online since May 31, 2005
Copyright © by Nikola-Michael Prpic. All rights reserved.
|
|
|
