NEW DATA AND COMMENTS ON SCARABAEIDAE (COLEOPTERA, SCARABAEOIDEA) ASSOCIATED WITH ATTINI (HYMENOPTERA, FORMICIDAE)

Although most Scarabaeidae are detritivorous, the biology of some spec ies is still largely unknown, and some of these species may be myrmeco philous. The aim of the present paper is to present new data on myrmec ophily, regarding the scarabaeids associated with attine ant nests. Tw o areas in Minas Gerais State, Brazil, were surveyed for the associati on, and ten species of Scarabaeidae were collected. From these at leas t one has been recorded before as myrmecophilous, Ontherus lobifrons G enier. The other nine species were: Holocephalus eridanus (Olivier), t hree unidentified Ateuchus Weber (one possibly A. myrmecophilus [Bouco mont], already cited in literature from attine nests), an unidentified Canthidium Erichson, Dendropaemon denticolle Felsche, Dendropaemon ga nglbaueri Felsche, Tetramereia convexa (Harold) and Canthon virens Man nerheim. Considering the data, it is suspected that many rare or poorl y known species of Scarabaeidae can be myrmecophilous, and this intera ction is more frequent than it was thought.