The staphylinid subfamily Pselaphinae is generally depauperate at high latitudes. We examine one exception, the tribe Pselaphini, at the southern extreme of its global distribution, the New Zealand subantarctic islands and the Chatham Islands, an archipelago farther north. Currently, only two species are known from remote Campbell Island (Pselaphotheseus hippolytae Park and P. ihupuku Carlton and Leschen). A new genus, Pselaphopluteum gen. nov. (type species, Pselaphopluteum motumaha sp. nov.) and two new species, Pselaphopluteum motumaha sp. nov. and Pselaphaulax dracophyllum sp. nov., from the Auckland Islands, are added to the subantarctic fauna. Pselaphophus atriventris Westwood, introduced from Australia, is currently the only species known from the Chatham Islands, although several unidentified species were noted by Emberson (Emberson, R. M. 2002. The beetle (Coleoptera) fauna of the Chatham Islands: additions and corrections. N.Z. Entomol. 25: 69–77.). Three new species are described from the Chatham islands: Pselaphaulax caeruleus sp. nov., Pselaphaulax flavus sp. nov., and Pselaphaulax traversi sp. nov. Potential biogeographic implications of these new taxa are discussed within the context of the overall New Zealand fauna of Pselaphini, which is the subject of ongoing study.

The Holarctic species Cirrospilus vittatus Walker, 1838 (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) is an important parasitoid of lepidopteran, dipteran, coleopteran, and hymenopteran leaf miners. One of the defining characteristics of the species has been its presumed extensive color variation, with individuals ranging from almost completely dark metallic green or blue to completely yellow with no metallic markings. An integrative approach utilizing morphological and molecular data (28S-D2, COI, ITS2) reveals that C. vittatus sensu lato in North America is a species complex comprised of at least four distinct, sometimes sympatric, species that can attack the same host.This species complex emerges as a monophyletic group, separate from Cirrospilus s.s., which we designate Burkseus gen. n.The species Burkseus vittatus comb. n. is redefined and has a Holarctic distribution, and B. flavoviridis (Crawford) comb. n. is reinstated from synonymy with B. vittatus. The following combinations are also proposed: B. elongatus (Bouček) comb. n., B. pinicolus (Askew) comb. n., and B. singa (Walker) comb. n.The following species are described as new: Burkseus sigillatus n. sp. and B. robustus n. sp. Some of the species are sympatric at several locations, but they remain molecularly and morphologically distinct.The delimitation of these species impacts our ability to assess their potential as biological control candidates against Citrus Leafminer, Phyllocnistis citrella Stainton (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae), and future invasive leaf miner threats.

The scentless plant bug genus Niesthrea Spinola, 1837 (Rhopalinae, Niesthreini) is revised. Fourteen previously described species are diagnosed; Niesthrea ashlocki Froeschner, 1989 and Niesthrea remediana Grillo and Alayo, 1978 (revised synonymy) are synonymized under Niesthrea flava Grillo and Alayo, 1978; Niesthrea parasidae Grillo and Alayo, 1978 is synonymized under Niesthrea sidae (Fabricius, 1794); Niesthrea pictipes casinii Göllner-Scheiding, 1984 is elevated to species status; a neotype is designated for Corizus campoi Porter; and the six new species Niesthrea choprai sp. nov. from Argentina and Peru, Niesthrea conicoloba sp. nov. from Argentina, Niesthrea lateroloba sp. nov. from Peru, Niesthrea parvaloba sp. nov. from Bolivia, Niesthrea rostrata sp. nov. from Colombia and Ecuador, and Niesthrea truncata sp. nov. from Brazil and Colombia are described. A color habitus illustration of N. flava, color digital images of all adults and male genitalia, and an identification key to the 20 currently known species, based primarily on male genitalia, are provided to help distinguish species. Host plants and biogeography are documented.

Targeted enrichment of ultraconserved elements (UCEs) has emerged as a promising tool for inferring evolutionary history in many taxa, with utility ranging from phylogenetic and biogeographic questions at deep time scales to population level studies at shallow time scales. However, the methodology can be daunting for beginners. Our goal is to introduce UCE phylogenomics to a wider audience by summarizing recent advances in arthropod research, and to familiarize readers with background theory and steps involved. We define terminology used in association with the UCE approach, evaluate current laboratory and bioinformatic methods and limitations, and, finally, provide a roadmap of steps in the UCE pipeline to assist phylogeneticists in making informed decisions as they employ this powerful tool. By facilitating increased adoption of UCEs in phylogenomics studies that deepen our comprehension of the function of these markers across widely divergent taxa, we aim to ultimately improve understanding of the arthropod tree of life.

The genus Cymbiodyta Bedel, 1881 (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae: Enochrinae) comprises 31 species distributed in both the Old and New World portions of the Holarctic realm. Although the species and taxonomy are relatively well known, the phylogenetic relationships among Cymbiodyta and the evolutionary history of the genus remain unexplored.To understand the systematics and evolution of this lineage, we sequenced five gene fragments for about half of the species in the genus, including most major morphological groups. We also estimated divergence times to test the hypothesis that Cymbiodyta beetles took advantage of the different land bridges connecting the Palearctic and Nearctic regions, that became subaerial in the Cretaceous and Paleocene. Our results recover the eastern Nearctic genus Helocombus Horn, 1890 nesting within Cymbiodyta.Therefore, we synonymize Helocombus syn. n. with Cymbiodyta, resulting in one new combination, Cymbiodyta bifidus (LeConte 1855) comb. n. Our dating analyses and ancestral range estimation support a Nearctic origin of Cymbiodyta in the late Cretaceous about 100 million year ago.The placement of the unique Palearctic species on a long branch as sister to the rest of the clade and the dating results cannot reject a role of the De Geer and/ orThulean routes in the colonization of the Palearctic region from the Nearctic; however, they do not support a role for Beringia in the more recent colonization of the Oriental region.