A taxonomic review of the endemic Mexican genus Ceratotrupes Jekel, 1865 (Coleoptera: Geotrupidae: Ceratotrupini), with the description of an unexpected new species from the Sierra Madre del Sur

Abstract

<p> In this study, we revise the taxonomy of the endemic Mexican genus <i>Ceratotrupes</i> Jekel, 1865. It comprises three species, distributed in the Sierra Madre Occidental and Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (<i>Ceratotrupes fronticornis</i> (Erichson, 1847) and <i>Ceratotrupes bolivari</i> Halffter & Martínez, 1962), and the Sierra Madre del Sur (<i>Ceratotrupes sturmi</i> (Jekel, 1865)). We confirm <i>C. mniszechi</i> (Jekel, 1865) as a junior subjective synonym of <i>C. sturmi</i>. The examination of the holotype of <i>C. sturmi</i> and specimens recently collected in the Sierra Sur de Oaxaca (Oaxaca) and Omiltemi (Guerrero) allowed us to identify and describe a new species, <i>Ceratotrupes gonzaloi</i> sp. nov. from Omiltemi, Guerrero. We redescribe the morphology of <i>C. sturmi</i> and provide a diagnostic key to the four members of the genus <i>Ceratotrupes</i>. Photographs of the habitus and male genitalia of the four species, a distribution map, and observations on their ecology and biogeography are provided.</p>