Eur. J. Entomol. 121: 7-18, 2024 | DOI: 10.14411/eje.2024.002

Stages in the degeneration of flight ability and their interspecific comparisons in the genus Synuchus (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in JapanOriginal article

Takashi SHIMIZU ORCID...1, Kôhei KUBOTA ORCID...1, Hiroshi IKEDA ORCID...1, 2
1 Department of Forest Science, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 113-8657 Tokyo, Japan; e-mails: TShimizu@fr.a.u-tokyo.ac.jp, kohei@fr.a.u-tokyo.ac.jp, hiroikeda@g.ecc.u-tokyo.ac.jp
2 Faculty of Agriculture and Life Science, Hirosaki University, 036-8561 Aomori, Japan

The degeneration in flight ability in beetles has rarely been studied in detail with regard to the polymorphism of flight traits within species. However, intraspecific diversity in flight traits means that the flight ability of species is in the process of degenerating, which could provide important insights into how flight ability in beetles degenerates. In this study, the flight muscle and hind wings of the genus Synuchus in Japan were studied, which revealed the morphological status of flight traits in 21 species of Synuchus. Several species in this genus were found to show intraspecific polymorphisms in the states of the flight muscle and hind wings, and in particular, the very high diversity of different types of hind wings. These results indicate that this genus contains a mixture of species at various stages in the degeneration of the ability to fly.

Keywords: Ground beetles, flight muscle, flight traits, hind wing, polymorphism

Received: August 12, 2023; Revised: December 8, 2023; Accepted: December 8, 2023; Published online: January 12, 2024  Show citation

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SHIMIZU, T., KUBOTA, K., & IKEDA, H. (2024). Stages in the degeneration of flight ability and their interspecific comparisons in the genus Synuchus (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in Japan. EJE, 121, Article 7-18. https://doi.org/10.14411/eje.2024.002
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