Othius laeviusculus

This appeared in a pitfall trap. The identification wasn't straightforward but I *think* I got there in the end... My only real concern is the apparent absence of a neck in all my photos of the live insect - photos of this species online show an obvious neck. However the head came off while I was examining the beetle and it does have a neck similar to that shown in the photos elsewhere - it was just hidden while I was photographing it.

As is often the case the first challenge was getting to subfamily. I still struggle (particularly with staphylininae I think) to decide which way to go at the very first Staphylinidae couplet - working out if the antennae are attached to the upper surface of the head or the side. I've always struggled with this, and I now realise that I'm probably not alone - using Lott & Anderson you get to Staphylininae by taking them to be on the upper surface whereas using Hackston you get to Staphylininae by taking them to be on the side! No wonder I struggle! Anyway, to be safe I keyed it both ways. Taking them to be on the side (using Lott & Anderson) it keyed to Paederinae which quickly led to a quite different set of creatures. The alternative was Staphylininae so then the next problem was getting to the right genus. Using both Lott & Anderson and Hackston it seemed to key to Othius, though the relative distance of the antennae from the eyes vs. from eachother was questionable when using Hackston - not clearly one or the other.

Once at genus Othius, getting to laeviusculus was easy, my only concern arising when I found pictures of neckier-looking insects. But the description of laeviusculus given in Lott & Anderson was pretty much spot on, the only slightly questionable bit is that the head is supposed to have weak linear microsculpture - it did have linear microsculpture but this was pretty clear so I wouldn't have called it weak. The curve of the mid tibia was also so very slight I'm not sure it warranted a mention at all. I dissected it in the hope that an aedeagus might help but it proved to be a female.

I've checked and re-checked this, trying both options wherever there was the slightest doubt at a couplet until I reached a dead-end. If I have gone wrong I really can't see where, but as always, I welcome correction if I have somehow messed up (or confirmation if I haven't).

female Othius laeviusculus showing head (4 views), pronotum (2 views), apical tergites and apical sternites, Wendling Beck Environment Project (Norfolk, UK), 2nd to 12th November 2022