Redescription of Scydmaenus excaviceps Lhoste (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Scydmaeninae)

Scydmaenus (Cholerus) excaviceps, occurring in southern India and Sri Lanka, was described twice by Jean Lhoste, in 1937 and 1938, based on the same holotype, thus creating a synonymous homonym. In his first description, Lhoste erroneously illustrated the aedeagus of Scydmaenus foveocephalus as that of S. excaviceps. Later, Herbert Franz redescribed the Sri Lankan species S. femoralis Nietner, 1856, but unfortunately this was based on misidentified non-type specimens that in fact belong to S. excaviceps.

This error led Franz to place S. excaviceps as a junior synonym of S. femoralis. Recently the type specimen of the true S. femoralis was rediscovered and it was possible to clarify this long-standing confusion. Scydmaenus excaviceps is removed from synonymy with S. femoralis and redescribed.