Some of the Species of Dyschirius Known to Occur in Maine

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Species of Dyschirius are cryptic, subterranean burrowers and not commonly collected. Splashing sandy stream banks and similar habitats can bring specimens there to the surface, and sometimes specimens may be collected at black-light traps. The genus is commonly associated with Staphylinids of the genus Bledius, but it is unclear whether this is a predator-prey relationship or one of different species merely occupying the same habitats, since the Bledius are also subterranean.
This is a taxonomically difficult genus, currently under revision by Dr. Yves Bousquet of Agriculture Canada in Ottawa. All specimens figured here have been identified by Dr. Bousquet, for which deep thanks are extended.

Photo	Scientific Name	Distribution & Ecology in Maine	General Distribution (mostly from Lindroth, 1961-69 & Bousquet & Larochelle, 1993*)
	Dyschirius affinis Fall Actual length: 2.7-3.0 mm	Probably throughout all but the northernmost parts of the state, though known only from a few specimens in central Maine. This specimen is from Strong (Franklin County).	Southernmost Quebec and Ontario, otherwise in U.S., west to Montana, south to Arizona, east to Virginia and Tennessee.
	Dyschirius curvispinus Putzeys Actual length: ca. 3.0 mm	Known only from this specimen, collected in Waterville (Kennebec County).	Apparently rare but apparently widely distributed; known from Mississippi, Texas, Connecticut, and Maine.
	Dyschirius erythrocerus LeConte Actual length: 4.4-4.9 mm	Throughout the southern part of the state, north at least to Waterville and Belgrade. In fine sand and silt at pond and slow stream margins This specimen is from Belgrade (Kennebec County).	Southernmost Ontario and SW Quebec, Newfoundland (1 specimen reported by Lindroth), west to Manitoba, South Dakota, Nebraska and Arkansas, south to Florida.
	Dyschirius globulosus (Say) Actual length: 2.6-3.2 mm	Probably throughout the state of Maine, on moist sandy or silty stream or pond margins, where vegetation is all but completely absent. This specimen from Canaan (Somerset County).	Transcontinental in the north, from the Canadian maritimes to Alaska, south in the west to British Columbia and Wyoming, in the east south to Alabama.
	Dyschirius integer LeConte Actual length: 2.7-4.2 mm	One of the most common species in the genus, on bare silty or clayey soils near streams and ponds. Probably found throughout the state of Maine on appropriate substrates. This specimen from Caratunk (Somerset County).	Transcontinental from the Canadian Maritimes to the Northwest Territories and Alaska, south to at least California in the west and to Pennsylvania and New Jersey in the east.
	Dyschirius pilosus LeConte Actual length: 2.7-3.2 mm	Probably throughout most of the state, but possibly not in northernmost Maine. On fine sand or silty soils, damp, usually but not always by water. This specimen from Waterville (Kennebec County).	From southern Quebec and Ontario west to Manitoba, south to Texas and Alabama.
	Dyschirius politus (Dejean) Actual length: 3.4-4.9 mm	Throughout Maine, commonly on fine sandy and silty riverbanks and sometimes by ponds in sand pits. This specimen from Belgrade (Kennebec County).	Transamerican in the north, from Newfoundland to Alaska, south to at least Utah, Massachusetts and Ohio.
	Dyschirius setosus LeConte Actual length: 2.5-3.2 mm	Possibly throughout the state but not common, on fine sand to clayey soils, moderately moist, often on the banks of smaller brooks but also by larger rivers; sometimes not associated with any water body at all as long as substrate is moist. This specimen taken from the innermost margin of the Atkins Bay marsh, a coastal salt marsh in Phippsburg (Sagadahoc County).	Transamerican, from the Canadian maritimes to Alaska, south to Washington State, Utah, Iowa and New Jersey.
	Dyschirius sphaericollis (Say) Actual length: 4.5-5.2 mm	One of the larger North American species, generally on sandier substrates along rivers and lakes, this species is probably to be found throughout Maine. This specimen is from the Sandy River in Mercer (Somerset County).	Transcontinental from Newfoundland and the Canadian maritimes to British Columbia, south to Oregon, New Mexico, Texas and Virginia.

* Sources for distributions:
• Bousquet, Y., and A. Larochelle, 1993: Catalogue of the Geadephaga (Coleoptera: Trachypachidae, Rhysodidae, Carabidae including Cicindelinae) of America North of Mexico. Memoirs of the Entomological Society of Canada, No. 167; 397 pp.
• Lindroth, Carl H., 1961-1969: The Ground-Beetles (Carabidae, excl. Cicindelinae) of Canada and Alaska, Parts 1-6. Opuscula Entomologica, Supplementa XX, XXIV, XXIX, XXIII, XXXIV, XXXV; Lund, Sweden: Entomogiska Sallskapet; XLVIII + 1192 pp.
  
  

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[ This page last modified 30 November, 2004. ]