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New Pycnomerus Erichson (Coleoptera: Zopheridae: Pycnomerini) from Rimatara, French Polynesia

Version 2 2024-06-06, 04:43
Version 1 2017-04-21, 09:03
journal contribution
posted on 2024-06-06, 04:43 authored by Nicholas PorchNicholas Porch, TR Smith
We describe two species of Pycnomerus, P. rimatara and P. prebblei, using subfossil material, from the island of Rimatara in the Austral Archipelago of French Polynesia. We consider it likely that these species are globally extinct, a result of the combination of a range of factors including: their probable single island endemic status, the lack of intact indigenous forest on Rimatara, their occurrence in the subfossil record only in samples older than 200–300 years before the present, and lack of historical collections. The potential extinction of these species reflects the long history of human transformation of Polynesian lowland forest habitats, especially the use of fire to transform landscapes, and parallels extensive and well-known extinctions in birds and land snails.

History

Journal

Zootaxa

Volume

4237

Pagination

154-166

Location

New Zealand

ISSN

1175-5326

eISSN

1175-5334

Language

English

Publication classification

C Journal article, C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2017, Magnolia Press

Issue

1

Publisher

MAGNOLIA PRESS