[ID] Badister sp

[Fauna]

Found this little chap dead in a drainage ditch on colliery spoil. I'm almost positive its Badister ballatus, but the pronotum isn't the usuall red.



Everything else match...size is 6mm, antennal first segment is pale and getting gradually paler apically from the last couple, plus all the other key factors.


Though i don't think this specimen was in anyway a perfect specimen...its mandibles where fused somewhat, making it impossible to see if they where truncate or not. There where also abnormalities with several setiferous puntures. The ones on the left of pronotum where doubled, behind the eyes on the left where two, while the right was single. Plus only one on the left labrum/clypeus area, while none on the right...not the best of pics but you can just pick out what i've mentioned.

[Fauna]

Forgot to add this other photo of a "norm" type specimen of what B.bullatus looks like around my parts...

[Fauna]

Just to update...

I've recieved (via email) a tentative confirmation that this is a very unusual Badister bullatus. The person in question has never seen this species with this type of pronotum colouring before...coming from this person it must be unusual indeed.

Need to get back to the site and try to find some live specimens to see if this is a one off or not?

[Paul mabbott]

I can't see what else it could be. B. bullatus is quite variable anyway and I suspect that the relative colours may have altered by immersion in water - on the other hand, it may have been a genetic oddity (which perhaps contributed to its demise?).