A. unicolor (type locality Borneo) is considered a synonym of A. japonicus Th. (Astathes is now considered a synonym of Tetraophthalmus by some of us, but that is not my problem right now)
Anyway, I have doubts that A. unicolor is a synonym of A. japonicus but I do not have material of A. japonicus. I have a short series in my collection of specimens from Borneo which agree near perfectly with the type of A. unicolor.
Does anybody have specimens of A. "japonicus" from other areas, such as Japan or the Philippines?
Dr. Ohbayashi in Japan has just informed me that A. japonica does not occur in Japan and that the type locality used by Thomson was undoubtedly an error. Furthermore, the type of japonica was examined previously and it appears to be most likely a species from Borneo or Java. Dr. Ohbayashi informs me that Dr. Saito in Japan has studied this tribe quite a lot, so I will try to contact her.
Astathes unicolor Pascoe Holotype
Posted - 28/03/2013 : 02:08:13
