Grey Gustafson, a graduate student at UNM studying biology, has discovered and named a new species of whirligig beetle in the southeastern United States.
Whirligig beetles, part of the family Gyrinidae, are commonly found in streams in this region of the country. These beetles swim on the surface of the water in whirling patterns, their eyes divided into four parts: one pair rests above the water’s surface, while the other sits below.
Gustafson said he first noticed them last summer, while doing fieldwork at the Conecuh National Forest in Alabama.
“I saw these whirligig beetles that looked slightly different than the normal Dineutus discolor,” said Gustafson.
They were smaller and more narrow than the common species. After collecting specimens and taking a video, he visited entomologist Robert Sites.
Sites, who works at the University of Missouri’s Enns Entomology Museum, worked closely with Gustafson on the project. Sites mentioned to Gustafson that 11 whirligig specimens at the museum collected during the 1970s were identified as potentially being a new species.
After comparing the museum’s collection with Gustafson’s findings, it was determined that these were members of the same unclassified species.
This is Gustafson’s fifth new species discovery, and his first in the United States. Nevertheless, he said it’s exciting to keep finding things that are new entries in his field.
“That’s always the thrill you get, when you’re looking through the scope and realize that this thing needs a name and is totally unknown as of yet,” he said. “That is always a very cool feeling, but it’s even more exciting when you realize, ‘Holy cow, this is right in our backyard.’”
Gustafson and Sites co-published a paper on the beetles, which Gustafson named Dineutus shorti. He said the name is based on Andrew Short, a past mentor who Gustafson said is an inspiration to him.
“He was the first professor that really took me in and showed me that I could have a career in entomology,” Gustafson said. “He is very passionate about biodiversity and conservation, so it seemed appropriate to name this new species of conservation concern in the U.S. after him.”
Short teaches classes on entomology and biodiversity at the University of Kansas. He said he met Gustafson when he hired him to process fieldwork insect samples. The two worked together on aquatic insects in Venezuela, Gustafson aided him in his lab with fieldwork in both Venezuela and Costa Rica, and they published two papers together on new South American beetle species.
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Short said having the new beetle species named after him was a pleasant surprise.
“Choosing species names is a very unique and special thing that biologists get to do, and I’m very honored he chose to name one after me,” Short said. “Grey was an extremely dedicated student and often worked late in the lab, looking at specimens and working on his projects. His passion for entomology is very infectious.”
Dineutus shorti is found in Florida and Alabama and is roughly 10 millimeters in length, Gustafson said. The male reproductive parts are shorter than Dineutus discolor, and it also has different frontal “hands” that the males use to grasp onto females during mating.
They were only found in Longleaf Pine trees over 40 years old that have undergone minimal to no deforestation. This particular pine tree species has faced harsh deforestation, negatively affecting various endemic species in the Southeastern Coastal Plane and endangering the species that are dependent on the Longleaf Pine.
The panhandle of Florida and Alabama is noted as being extremely fruitful in species that are not found outside of the region. Thus, Gustafson said hopes that more individuals study the area to better understand the biodiversity there overall.
“Species are supposed to be the fundamental unit of biology. It’s important that we know when we have two species versus one species, so that we don’t make conclusions about one species that may or may not apply to a different species,” he said.
Gustafson, who has conducted fieldwork in Madagascar, Venezuela, Australia and Thailand, said that more biologists are needed to cultivate what he calls a dying field in the taxonomy of new insects.
He advised anyone with even a remote interest in entomology to document what they can about insects that can be found in their own backyards, because even the slightest contribution may help the scientific community.
“We really need young, passionate, new blood in coleopterology (the scientific study of beetles),” he said.
Elizabeth Sanchez is a reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at news@dailylobo.com and on Twitter @Beth_A_Sanchez.
