Preliminary morphological analysis for systematic revision of the longhorned beetle genus Elytroleptus Dugés (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Cerambycinae: Trachyderini)

Preliminary findings for a revision and phylogenetic analysis of the longhorned beetle genus Elytroleptus Dugés (Cerambycidae) are presented. Consisting of eighteen species, Elytroleptus is the only genus in the vast Cerambycidae family (35,000 described species worldwide) known to have several predaceous species. Elytroleptus species are also of particular interest to naturalists as they are strikingly precise mimics of beetles in the family Lycidae. Perhaps most intriguing is that several of these species are predaceous upon their lycid models. This revision is therefore of importance not only from the taxonomic viewpoint, but also in connection with studies of mimicry behavior. Approximately 1000 specimens accumulated from North American public and private institutions have been evaluated for morphological features. Characters to be used in the phylogenetic analysis are assessed and discussed.