Beetles of North Carolina
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Scientific Name: Common Name:
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View Carabidae Members:
Members of Trechus:
1 NC Records

Trechus tusquitensis Donabauer, 2005 - No Common Name

Taxonomy
Family: Carabidae Subfamily: Trechinae                                                             
Comments: One of 82 species in this genus that have been recorded in North America north of Mexico, 42 of which occur in North Carolina (Bosquet, 2012). Trechus tusquitensis belongs to subgenus Microtrechus and is included in the Uncifer Species Group by Donabauer (2005a). In addition to tusquitensis, Bosquet (2012) includes 10 other species in this group, all of which occur in the North Carolina mountains or on the ridges forming the border between North Carolina and Tennessee.
Species Status: The type locality is Tusquitee Bald (Donabauer, 2005a)
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Online Resources: BugGuide, Wikipedia, GBIF   iNaturalistTechnical Description, Adults/Nymphs: Donabauer (2005a)                                                              
Comments: Donabauer's (2005a) description is virtually the same as he gave for thunderheadensis. In general, members of this genus show too little variation in pattern for standard photographs to be used to identify particular species.
Total Length [body plus wings; excludes ovipositor]: 3.0-3.4 mm (Donabauer, 2005a)
Structural Features: As a member of subgenus Microtrechus, only the first segment of front tarsus is enlarged in males. This species is distinguished from other members of its species group morphometrically and by features of the aedeagus (Barr, 1962, 1979).
Distribution in North Carolina
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Flight Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥
 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) <
 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)
Click on graph to enlarge
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Tusquitee Bald is 5,240' in elevation and is the highest elevation in the Tusquitee Mountains. The summit is covered with high elevation hardwood forest. Donabauer collected specimens from under stones and in wet leaf litter beside a swampy area near a spring.
See also Habitat Account for General High Elevation Forests
Diet: Predatory on small insects and other invertebrates
Observation Methods:
Abundance/Frequency:
Adult Phenology:
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status: [SR]
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: [GNR] [S1]
State Protection:
Comments: This species is known from only a single, isolate, high elevation summit in the Tusquitee Mountains of North Carolina. Like other members of its genus, it is probably a climate relict and is highly likely to be vulnerable to the warming and drying impacts of climate change.