Elmid adult
Photograph courtesy of Institute for Water Quality Studies, Department of Water Affairs and Forestry

The Clinging Water Beetles (Coleoptera: Elmidae) of South Africa

Compiled by A.D. Harrison

111A Berg Road, Fish Hoek, 7965 South Africa

© Copyright of this page belongs to the author.
Yours is the access since 1 January 1997

CONTENTS

Introduction
Elmidae
References

Elmid larvae
Photograph courtesy of Institute for Water Quality Studies, Department of Water Affairs and Forestry

INTRODUCTION

The list of species is compiled from the works of Joseph Delève (1964, 1965, 1966), who dealt only with adults. Most species live in fast running water clinging to stones, pieces of submerged wood and aquatic mosses; also to Scirpus digitatus in the Cape. Some Afrotropical species are found in marginal vegetation; Helminthopsis is found in standing water. Information about the phylogenetic position of the dryopoids can be obtained from

The Coleoptera page of The Tree of Life

The distributions are taken from Delève's works and the complier's private records. The references are provided by Dr. A. Harrison and Dr. R. Palmer.

Family: ELMIDAE

  1. Genus: HAPLELMIS
    1. H. mixta (Grouvelle)
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, Franschhoek Forest Reserve, Groot Drakenstein; Sneeugat, Great Winterhoek Mts) and Mpungalanga (Vaal River)


  2. Genus: LEIELMIS
    1. L. georyssoides (Grouv.)
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, upper Franschhoek Forest Reserve)


  3. Genus: PELORIOLUS
    also found in Angola.
    1. P. granulosus Delève
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, Franschhoek Forest Reserve, Table Mountain)

    2. P. parvulus Delève
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, Franschhoek Forest Reserve; Groot Drakenstein)

    3. P. costulatipennis Delève
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, Groot Drakenstein, Franschhoek Forest Reserve)

    4. P. patruelis Delève
      Western Cape (Swellendam, Wolfkloof; Great Berg River, Franschhoek Forest reserve), and Angola.

    5. P. pilosellus Delève
      Western Cape (Storms River)

    6. Peloriolus interstitialis Delève
      Western Cape (Kogelbaai)

    7. Peloriolus difficilis Delève
      Western Cape (Steenbras Dam)

    8. Peloriolus sp. ?
      Western Cape (Franschhoek Forest Reserve)


  4. Genus: ELPIDELMIS
    1. E. capensis (Grouv.)
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, Franschhoek Forest Reserve, Simondium; Table Mountain; Silvermine River; Jonkershoek)

    2. E. fossicolis Delève
      Western Cape (Silvermine River)


  5. Genus: CTENELMIS
    reported from South Africa and Angola.
    1. C. harrisoni Delève
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, Franschhoek Forest Reserve)

    2. C. incerta (Grouv.)
      Western Cape ("Cape of Good Hope", probably Table Mountain or mountains not far away)

    3. C. lata Delève
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, Franschhoek Forest Reserve)

    4. C. rufipes Delève
      Western Cape (Swellendam district, Wolfkloof), and Angola

    5. C. tibialis Delève
      Western Cape (Swellendam district, Wolfkloof; Outeniqua Pass; Kruis River), and Angola

    6. C. elegans Delève
      Western Cape (Tradouw Pass; Caledon District)

      Subgenus: PARACTENELMIS

    7. P. discrepans Delève
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, Franschhoek Forest Reserve, Groot Drakenstein)


  6. Genus: TROPIDELMIS
    1. T. hintoni Delève
      Western Cape (Great Berg River, Franschhoek Forest Reserve, Groot Drakenstein)


  7. Genus: PACHYELMIS
    An Afrotropical genus.
    1. [ P. convexa Grouvelle
      Zimbabwe, to East Africa ]

    2. [ P. rufomarginata Delève
      Zimbabwe, to Zaire. ]


  8. Genus: HELMINTHOPSIS
    A large Afrotropical genus.
    1. [ H. bifida Delève
      Zimbabwe ]

    2. H. ciliata Delève
      Mpungalanga (Vaal River)

      Subgenus: ELMIDOLIANA

    3. E. elongata Delève
      Mpungalanga (Vaal River), to Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Zaire

    4. [ E. zambezica Delève
      Zimbabwe and Zambia ]

    5. [ E. rhodesiana Delève
      Zimbabwe ]


  9. Genus: MICRODINODES
    A large Afrotropical genus.
    1. M. transvaalicus (Grouvelle)
      Gauteng (Hammanskraal; Vaal River), to Zaire

    2. M. simoni (Grouvelle)
      "Transvaal" (no locality given)

    3. M. vaalensis Delève
      Mpungalanga (Vaal River)


  10. Genus: LEPTELMIS
    An Afrotropical genus.
    1. L. fragilis Delève
      Mpungalanga (Vaal River)

    2. [ L. orchymonti Delève
      Zimbabwe ]


  11. Genus: PSEUDOMACRONYCHUS
    An Afrotropical genus.
    1. P. decoratus Grouvella.
      Mpungalanga (Vaal River)


  12. Genus: STENELMIS
    An Afrotropical genus.
    1. S. noblei Delève
      Mpungalanga (Great Usutu River; Sabie River; Blyde River; Mutale River; Nels River; Noord Kaap River; Suid Kaap River)

    2. S. thusa Hinton
      Mpungalanga (Vaal River; Olifants-Klip River)

    3. S. gades Hinton
      Mpungalanga (Vaal River) and KwaZulu-Natal (Zululand)

    4. S. ares Hinton
      KwaZulu-Natal (no locality given)


  13. Genus: LOBELMIS
    An Afrotropical genus.
    1. [ L. harrisoni Delève
      Zimbabwe ]


  14. Genus: POTAMODYTES
    Found in Asia Minor, Africa nad Madagascar.
    1. P. brincki Delève
      Northern Cape (Upington, Serfontein Bridge)



REFERENCES

These papers now held by Dr. Jackie King, Freshwater Research Unit, University of Cape Town.

Delève, J. 1964a.
Contribution a l'étude des Dryopoidea. VIII. Cinq nouveaux genres d'Elmithidae (Coleoptera) de l'Afrique australe. Bull. Ann. Soc. roy. Ent. Belg. 100: 155-176.
Delève, J. 1964b.
Contribution a l'étude des Dryopoide. IX. le genre Pachyelmis Fairmaire. Les espèces du continent africain (Coleoptera Elminthidae). Bull. Ann. Soc. roy. Ent. Belg. 100: 237-254.
Delève, J. 1964c.
Contribution a l'étude des Dryopoidea. (Coleoptera). X. Dryopidae et Elminthidae de l'Afrique Australe. Bull. An. Soc. roy. Ent. Belg. 100: 509-541.
Delève, J. 1965.
Contribution a l'étude des Dryopoidea. XII. Revision du genre Microdinodes et description d'un genre nouveau (Cioleoptera Elminthidae). Ann. Mus. roy. Afr. centr., sér. 8O, Sci. Zool. 140: 1-57.
Delève, J. 1965a.
Contribution a l'étude des Dryopoidea. XIII. Notes sur le genre Helminthopsis Grouvelle et description d'espèces nouvelles (Coleoptera Eliminthidae). Bull. Inst. roy. Sci. nat. Belg. 41(11): 1-31.
Delève, J. 1965b.
Contribution a l'étude des Dryopoidea. XV. De quelques espèces du genre Pseudomacronychus Grouvelle (Coleoptera Elminthidae). Bull. Inst. roy. Sci. nat. Belg. 41 no 22: 1-10.
Delève, J. 1966a.
Contribution a l'étude des Dryopoidea. XVI, Notes taxonomiques sur les espèces ethiopiennes du genre Stenelmis Dufour (Coleoptera Elminthidae) et description d'espèces nouvelles. Bull. Ann. Soc. roy. Ent. Belg. 102:57-96.
Delève, J. 1966b.
Contribution a l'étude des Dryopoidea. XVII, Elminthidae (Coleoptera) de la Province du Cap et d'Angola. Bull. Ann Soc. roy. Ent. Belg. 102: 97-108.
Delève, J. 1966c.
Contribution a l'étude des Dryopoidea. XVIII, Notes complementaires sur les espèces africaines du genre Leptelmis Sharp et descriptions d'espèces nouvelles. (Coleoptera Elminthidae). Bul. Inst. roy. Sci. nat. Belg. 42 no 8: 1-10.
Delève, J. 1966d.
Dryopidae et Elminthidae de l'Angola. Publicacoes culturais a Companhia de Diamantes de Angola, Lisboa. 77: 39-63.
Delève, J. 1970.
Coleoptera: Dryopidae et Elminthidae. In Hanström, Brinck & Rudebeck (eds.) South African Animal Life 14: 216-227.

This part of A Catalogue of South African Insects revised: