Meruidae

Definition

A monotypic family of minute aquatic beetles (Coleoptera: Adephaga) containing the single genus and species Meru phyllisae. Adults and larvae inhabit thin water films on granitic rock surfaces during the wet season in Venezuela. At approximately 0.8 mm in length, it is among the smallest known adephagan beetles. The family was formally described in 2005 based on specimens first collected in the early 1980s.

Etymology

From the type genus Meru (named for Cerro El Merú, the Venezuelan tepui where it was discovered) + Latin suffix -idae (family).

Example

Meruidae represents an extreme case of miniaturization within Adephaga; its adults are smaller than many beetle larvae and occupy a specialized microhabitat of ephemeral water films on bare rock that few other aquatic beetles can exploit.

Related Terms

• Adephaga
• Coleoptera
• Monotypic
• microhabitat
• tepui
• miniaturization
• aquatic beetle

Usage Notes

Always treated as plural in taxonomic usage (the family Meruidae contains...). The sole species Meru phyllisae is endemic to the Pantepui region of Venezuela. Contrast with other small adephagan families such as Aspidytidae and Amphizoidae, which occupy different aquatic microhabitats.