About Mecodema crenicolle Laporte, 1867
Mecodema crenicolle Laporte, 1867 is a medium-large ground beetle, with an adult body length ranging from 22 to 29 mm. It belongs to the ducale species group within the Mecodema genus, and has two key identifying features for the group: its pronotum carina is strongly crenulated, and its outer elytral striae are marked with coarse, star-shaped asetose punctures. These punctures are positioned irregularly, and are deeper in the outer striae. Mecodema crenicolle can be distinguished from its close sister species, Mecodema crenaticolle, by a consistent trait: the punctures in the 7th elytral stria are larger than the punctures in the 8th elytral stria, and the two striae cannot be told apart at the base of the elytra. Mecodema crenicolle is a burrowing ground beetle that inhabits native forests, pine plantations, and pastures. It occurs across a wide elevational range, from lowland areas up into mountainous forests. Like all species in the Mecodema genus, M. crenicolle is flightless, and preys on other invertebrates. This species is only found in Marlborough, Nelson, and Brunner District, all located in the South Island of New Zealand. According to the 2019 work of Seldon & Buckley, any specimens previously recorded from the North Island are actually M. crenaticolle, not M. crenicolle.
