14. A. fimetarius (Linnaeus, 1758)

[= pedellus (De Geer, 1774) sensu Wilson (2001)]

Bercio & Folwaczny 1979; Alekseev & Sakhnov 2000; Alekseev 2005, 2007, 2014; Alekseev & Shapoval 2016.

Voucher specimens: 33 [Zelenogradsk, 27 April 1997; Svetlogorsk, 14 May 1997; Dolzhanskoe, 29 June 1997; Rybachii, 10 August 1997, 3 exp.; 1 km E Cherniakhovsk, 06 May 1999, 2 exp.; ibidem, 29 May 2007; Kashirskoe, 22 May 1999; 1 km S Zelenogradsk, 10 June 2000, male edeagus extracted; Sovetsk, 09 July 2000, 2 exp., male edeagus extracted; Kumachevo, 16 June 2001; Kolosovka, 02 June 2001; ibidem, 11 June 2003; 5 km NE Cherniakhovsk, 31 March 2002, 2 exp.; Timiryazevo, 12 June 2007; Kaliningrad, May 2003; ibidem, 19 August 2007, A. fimetarius ab. autumnalis (Naezen, 1792); Krasnoles’e, 07 June 2008; Cherniakhovsk, 1 May 2016; Mechnikov, 09 April 2018; ibidem, 07 May 2018; Medovoe, 10 April 2018, 2 exp.; Baltic Spit, 26 June 2018, 2 exp.; Vzmor’e, 11 September 2018; Sosnovka, 16 October 2018, 3 exp.].

Kaliningrad Region: Common everywhere; Bagr., Chern., Gur., Gus., Gvard., Krasn., Nem., Nest., Oz., Pol., Pravd., Slav., Zel .

Comments: Eutytopic, widely distributed and abundant species occupies a variety of open habitats. It is encountered in different kinds of excrements on pastures, forest edges and in towns; the species is one of the most frequently observed representatives of the subfamily Aphodiinae . The aberration autumnalis (Naezen) is rare and was sampled only once in Kaliningrad. The sibling species A. cardinalis Reitter, 1892 [ = fimetarius (Linnaeus, 1758) sensu Wilson (2001)], recently discovered on the base of distinctly different karyotype (Wilson 2001) and sympatric with A. fimetarius within Central and Southern Europe (Miraldo et al. 2014; Fery & Rössner 2015; Rössner & Fery 2015) was not found. Several externally questionable specimens were dissected, but the genitalia extracted showed the presence of A. fimetarius [ pedellus sensu Wilson] in the Region only.