Jing-Zhi LIN (林敬智)1
- 2F., No. 3, Aly. 152, Ln. 68, Yangguang St., Neihu Dist., Taipei City 114, Taiwan (R.O.C.) e-mail: leslie9562@gmail.com ORCID: 0009-0008-1787-2602
DOI: 10.23332/DOSW.2026.2.1.1.06
This study reports the first confirmed record of the rhinoceros beetle Xylotrupes socrates tonkinensis Minck, 1920 from the Matsu Islands, Taiwan. Specimens collected from Beigan and Dongju Islands were identified based on male external morphology. Although recent molecular research suggests that phenotypic variations within theX. siamensis/socrates complex may represent clinal variation under an isolation-by-distance model, this study adopts the taxonomic framework established in the latest published monograph of the genus, which maintains the validity of this subspecies based on morphological consistency. This discovery extends the known northern distribution limit of the taxon in the Taiwan Strait from the Kinmen Archipelago to the Matsu Islands, providing critical empirical data for future taxonomic revisions and biogeographical studies of the genus in East Asia. An updated checklist and a key to the genus Xylotrupes in Taiwan are also provided.
Keywords: Xylotrupes, Matsu Islands, Lienchiang County, Dynastinae, new record, Taiwan.
Copyright. This work © 2026 by Author(s) is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International. To view a copy of this license, visit https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
작은 세상의 다양성 (The Diversity of Small Worlds), Volume 2, Issue 1, 1-6 pp.
*This work is available as an early release. The official publication date is February 28, 2026.