Stenus aureolus Fauvel 1875
Creators: name: Shuai, Qi
name: Tang, Liang
name: Luo, Yong-Ting
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2020
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Coleoptera
Staphylinidae
Stenus
Stenus aureolus

description: Key to species of the Stenus aureolus group from China   
1 Abdominal tergite VII with apical membranous fringe; elytra longer with EL/EW = 0.90–1.09, macropterous or brachypterous species............................................... 2  
– Abdominal tergite VII without apical membranous fringe; elytra shorter with EL/EW = 0.77–0.88, brachypterous species.......................................................... 5  
2 Relatively smaller species with FL = 1.8–2.3 mm; hind tarsi with segments IV shortly but distinctly bilobed; elytra shorter with EL/EW = 0.90–1.02. The species should be best identified by examining male and female genitalia......................................................................................... 3  
 – Relatively larger species with FL = 2.3–2.6 mm; hind tarsi with segments IV indistinctly emarginated on apical margin; elytra longer with EL/EW = 1.02–1.09. Habitus: Fig. 3; aedeagus: Fig. 19; spermatheca unknown. Yunnan, Qinghai................................................................................... S. musicola Cameron, 1930   
3 Apical sclerotized area of aedeagal median lobe relatively longer (Figs 15, 38); spermatheca tube very coiled at the first bend (Figs 18, 41)......................................... 4  
 – Apical sclerotized area of aedeagal median lobe relatively shorter; spermatheca tube simple at first bend. BL: 3.5–4.2 mm. Habitus: Fig. 1; sexual characters: Figs 11–14. Heilongjiang, Jilin, Neimenggu.......................................................................... S. aureolus Fauvel, 1875   
 4 HW/EW = 0.83–0.96; apical sclerotized area of aedeagal median lobe relatively broader and shorter; hind wings longer, 1.88–3.19 times as long as elytra. BL: 3.4– 4.5 mm. Habitus: Fig. 2; sexual characters: Figs 15–18. Sichuan, Yunnan, Ningxia, Shaanxi, Qinghai....................................................... S. trigonuroides Zheng, 1993   
 – HW/EW = 0.91–0.98; apical sclerotized area of aedeagal median lobe relatively narrower and longer; hind wings shorter, slightly longer than half the elytra. BL: 3.8–4.5 mm. Habitus: Fig. 9; sexual characters: Figs 38–41. Yunnan..............  S. paratrigonuroides sp. nov.    
 5 Head and pronotum with interstices distinctly reticulated. Habitus: Fig. 4; sexual characters: Figs 22. Xinjiang................................... S. nigraureolus Ryvkin, 2003   
– Head and pronotum with interstices smooth or at most indistinctly and partially reticulated............................ 6  
 6 Smaller species with FL: 1.6–1.7 mm; hind tarsi with segments IV indistinctly emarginated on apical margin. BL: 3.5–3.7 mm. Habitus: Fig. 5; sexual characters: Figs 23–26. Qinghai.................  S. mendaensis sp. nov.    
– Larger species with FL: 1.8–2.4 mm; hind tarsi with segments IV shortly but distinctly bilobed. The species should be identified by genitalia dissections............... 7  
 7 Apical sclerotized area of aedeagal median lobe short, expulsion clasps (Fig. 28) less protruded inwards medially. Habitus: Fig. 6; sexual characters: Figs 27–29. Sichuan.............................................  S. aduncus sp. nov.    
– Apical sclerotized area of aedeagal median lobe long, expulsion clasps more protruded inwards medially (Fig. 30)............................................................................ 8  
 8 Aedeagus with expulsion clasps stout; spermatheca (Fig. 33) with basal porch less emarginated on apical margin, and spermatheca duct slender. Habitus: Fig. 7; sexual characters: Figs 30–33. Yunnan.........................................................................  S. platydentatus sp. nov.    
– Aedeagus with expulsion clasps slender; spermatheca with basal porch more emarginated on apical margin and spermatheca duct stout.......................................... 9  
 9 Apical sclerotized area of aedeagal median lobe relatively short and wide, expulsion clasps slender in apical half; spermatheca duct (Fig. 37) more coiled at first bend. Habitus: Fig. 8; sexual characters: Figs 34–37. Yunnan...................................  S. tenuidentatus sp. nov.    
 – Apical sclerotized area of aedeagal median lobe relatively long and narrow, expulsion clasps stout in apical half; spermatheca duct (Fig. 45) less coiled at first bend. Habitus: Fig. 10; sexual characters: Figs 42–45. Yunnan...........................................  S. alpigenus sp. nov.
description: Published as part of Shuai, Qi, Tang, Liang & Luo, Yong-Ting, 2020, A review of the Stenus aureolus group of China (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae), pp. 615-627 in Acta Entomologica Musei Nationalis Pragae (Acta. Ent. Mus. Natl. Pragae) (Acta. Ent. Mus. Natl. Pragae) 60 (2) on pages 626-627, DOI: 10.37520/aemnp.2020.043, http://zenodo.org/record/5177872