Dalotia Casey 1910

Genus Dalotia Casey, 1910 Dalotia Casey, 1910: 106 (original description, as a subgenus of Dimetrota; type species: Dimetrota pectorina Casey, 1910). Atheta (Dalotia): Bernhauer & Scheerpeltz, 1926: 662 (catalogue, as a synonym of the subgenus Dimetrota); Smetana, 2004: 380 (catalogue); Schülke & Smetana, 2015: 529 (catalogue). Dalotia: Gusarov, 2003: 88 (raised to generic rank, diagnosis); Newton, 2024 (catalogue); Muona, 2023: 19 (diagnosis). “ Taxicera ”: Yosii & Sawada, 1976: 125 (diagnosis). Diagnosis. Although the general appearance is very similar to other genera of Athetini, it differs by the following characteristics: ligula with two long setae; long hypopharyngeal setae; spermatheca without umbilicus (modified after Gusarov, 2003 and Muona, 2023). Compared with Taxicera, this genus can be distinguished by following characteristics: ligula divided at apical half; median lobe with athetine bridge; spermatheca once coiled (see also Discussion). Remarks. Muona (2023) described the highly complicated internal structure of the median lobe of male aedeagus for the diagnostic characteristic of Dalotia. It would be meant internal structure with large suspensoria and long sclerites described in Yosii & Sawada (1976). However, the large suspensoria are also observed in some athetine genera, such as Neodimetrota Muona, 2023, Notothecta Thomson, 1858. Furthermore, in Dalotia pseudorphana comb. nov., described later, the suspensoria is relatively small and long sclerites are not observed (Fig. 6B in this paper and fig. 19P in Sawada, 1977) but, it is clearly closely similar to D. coriaria and belong to Dalotia by the characteristics of ligula, median lobe, and spermatheca (see also Discussion). Thus, this characteristic should be deleted from the diagnosis of Dalotia.