[ID] Silpha sp?

[Fauna]

Found several of these dead today...can anyone help get to exact species please. I've retained one, so should be able to help key it out if need be. Size 17mm

[Paul mabbott]

Have you a picture of it more 'top on' and showing the antennae more clearly? Most likely Silpha/Phosphuga atrata. Every time this comes up there's an argument about the current generic name! But then it could be a Thanatophilus because it doesn't have extending mouth parts .... - a bit early in the day for this sort of thing .... more coffee ..

[Fauna]

Lol...i know what you mean by more coffee in the morning Paul

Yes i should have known better with the pics...more angles of the wee beasty.

These are the best i can get at the moment.






My initial thoughts where what you have named Silpha/Phosphuga atrata, but due to my lack of liturature on this group i was'nt 100%. Though, what i could gather from sources throughout the web, S.tristris was also on the cards for the above specimen. The slightly longer and narrower size made me doubt S.atrata???

But as i have mentioned, i've a lack of liturature on this group. So could someone recommend a Key on these for me please

[Paul mabbott]

Well, I've gone and worked through the only key that's available, I think: Joy A Practical Handbook for British Beetles. It's Silpha tristis.

Phosphuga/Ablattaria has an extebnded face: it is a molluscivore and pokes its head into small snails, so that is quite distinctive. The other features are hairiness (or not), roughness/pitting/ridging of the forebody and elytra (or not), colour (some are reddish in part), shape of the forebody (completely rounded in Phosphuga/Ablattaria) ... and then you get down to the size/shape of the antennal segments!

One day, when I get my computer back, I'll rewrite and up-date the key .... one day .....

[Fauna]

Thanks for your time and effort on this one Paul.

I hope you can get around to doing that key one day, i believe it will be of great use