Homotrysis macleayi
Homotrysis macleayi (Borchmann, 1909), a new record for New Zealand (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae: Alleculinae)
Stephen Thorpe, 9 March 2012
On 28 April 2004, I collected an unfamiliar looking alleculine tenebrionid in Auckland Domain, at night, on the base of the trunk of a eucalyptus tree. The site was a stand of eucalyptus and wattle trees adjacent to George Street (Lat.: -36.863854, long.: 174.775009). I deposited the specimen in the collection of Auckland Museum (accession number: AMNZ 57969), but took no further action, nor did I attempt to identify it any further. No more specimens were seen until 8 March 2012, when I collected three specimens under the loose bark of a chopped up wattle tree (possibly Paraserianthes lophantha), in the grounds of the Tamaki Campus, University of Auckland (Lat.: -36.886151, long.: 174.852581). I photographed one of these specimens (see fig. 1) and emailed the photo to Eric Matthews (South Australian Museum), who kindly replied the following day (9 March 2012) and recognised the species in the image as Homotrysis macleayi, an Australian species known from Northern Territory, Queensland, and northern New South Wales. The imaged specimen has been deposited into the Entomology Research Museum, Lincoln University (LUNZ). A second specimen has been deposited into AMNZ (registration number: pending). The remaining specimen was given to MAF, who intend to arrange for deposition of it into NZAC.
