Phoberus elmariae
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| Phoberus elmariae | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Suborder: | Polyphaga |
| Infraorder: | Scarabaeiformia |
| Family: | Trogidae |
| Subfamily: | Troginae |
| Genus: | Phoberus |
| Species: | P. elmariae |
| Binomial name | |
| Phoberus elmariae van der Merwe & Scholtz, 2005 | |
Phoberus elmariae is a species of hide beetle in the subfamily Troginae discovered by the scientists van de Merwe and Scholtz in 2005.[1][2] Like with many other beetle species, P. elmariae has not been observed again after its discovery, so all knowledge of the species comes from the 16 individual beetles van de Merwe and Scholtz saw during fieldwork.[3]
Taxonomically, P. elmariae was initially placed in the subgenus Trox (Phoberus); when Phoberus was recognized as a full genus, taxonomists moved P. elmariae from the genus Trox to the genus Phoberus. Within the genus Phoberus, P. elmariae is most similar to P. natalensis and P. quadricostatus; in fact, females of the three species are almost completely identical, and only the shape of their male genitalia can reliably distinguish the three species. Specifically, the parameres of P. elmariae are rounded at their ends, while the other hide beetles' parameres square off at the ends.[3][2]