Subgenus Callisthenes Fischer von Waldheim, 1822

Callisthenes Fischer von Waldheim, 1821: 11 (type: panderi Fischer von Waldheim, 1820)
Callisphaena Motschulsky, 1859: 127 (type: reticulatum Fabricius, 1787)
Microcallisthenes Apfelbeck, 1918: 161 (type pentheri Apfelbeck, 1918)
Isocallia Lapouge, 1929: 2 (type: breviusculus Mannerheim, 1830)
Calosoma (Teratexis) Semenov-Tian-Shansky & Znojko, 1933: 99 (type: fabulosum Semenov-Tian-Shansky & Znojko, 1933)

Jeannel (1940) considered Callisthenes, Microcallisthenes and Chrysostigma, as the result of a unique evolutionary line that, in his hypothesis, dates back to Asian Caminara and then spreaded to North America via the Arctic lands in the tertiary period. All the species pertaining to this evolutionary line should be identified by the glabrous elongated spots they have on the outer face of the articles of antennas from the fifth segment onwards and by the absence of brush on the middle tibiae of the males. All of them have setae on metatrochanter and lack the setae at the base of the pronotum. Again according Jeannel, Callisthenes differs because of a short mentum without setae.
Callisthenes includes mainly Asiatic species, that, presumably, originated in Central Asia.
Jeannel (1940) had maintained separate (in terms of gender) Teratexis fabulous for the hyper-development of head and pronotum, the elytra with deep depressions, the middle and hind tibiae curved in the males, and Callisphaena reticulatus (in terms of subgenus) for the presence of wings, which are absent in all other species of the group, and because of the shape of the pronotum.
Kryzhanovskij (1962), as Gidaspov (1959), has maintained Callisthenes as a distinct genus, that (in addition to Microcallisthenes and Callisthenia) includes the sub-genres: Callisphaena, Callisthenes e Teratexis. This approach was also followed by Obydov (2002), author of a recent and very well documented monograph.
However the characteristics for distinguishing more subgenera beside Callisthenes do not appear to be conclusive, as will be discussed when dealing with the different species. Moreover we have not considered appropriate, in relationship to our limited aims, to accept all species and subspecies established by Obydov on the basis of the separation of habitats and morphological differences. By accepting this approach, to allow the reading of the phylogenetic relationships, it would be then necessary to distinguish between one or other subspecies hierarchically subordinated (see eg in Carabus, the concept of subspecies as an aggregate of "nationes" of Breuning or the use of "strong" or "weak" subspecies made by Deuve) or to establish groups of closely related species, as needs to do Obydov. We therefore preferred, as regards the nomenclature, to follow the most concise approach of Jeannel with some adjustments.

Calosoma (Callisthenes) anthrax Semenov, 1900
Calosoma (Callisthenes) anthrax subsp. anthrax Semenov, 1900
Calosoma (Callisthenes) anthrax subsp. grumi Semenov, 1900
Calosoma (Callisthenes) breviusculum (Mannerheim, 1830)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) breviusculum subsp. breviusculum (Mannerheim, 1830)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) breviusculum subsp. substriatum (Motschulsky, 1859)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) breviusculum subsp. pumicatum Lapouge, 1907
Calosoma (Callisthenes) elegans (Kirsh, 1859)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) elegans subsp. elegans (Kirsh, 1859)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) elegans subsp. karagaicum (Lapouge, 1924)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) elegans subsp. manderstjernae (Ballion, 1870)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) elegans subsp. semenovi (Motschulsky, 1859)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) elegans subsp. rostislavi Semenov, 1906
Calosoma (Callisthenes) elegans subsp. subtilestriatum Mandl, 1954
Calosoma (Callisthenes) ewersmanni (Chaudoir, 1850)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) fabulosum Semenov-Tian-Shansky & Znojko, 1933
Calosoma (Callisthenes) fischeri (Fischer von Waldheim, 1842)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) kuschakewitschi (Ballion, 1870)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) kuschakewitschi subsp. kuschakewitschi (Ballion, 1870)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) kuschakewitschi subsp. plasoni (Born, 1917)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) kuschakewitschi subsp. batesoni Semenov-Tian-Shansky & Redikorzev, 1928
Calosoma (Callisthenes) kuschakewitschi subsp. glasunowi Semenov, 1900
Calosoma (Callisthenes) kuschakewitschi subsp. akkolicum (Obydov & Gottwald, 2002)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) marginatum (Gebler, 1830)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) marginatum subsp. marginatum Gebler, 1830
Calosoma (Callisthenes) marginatum subsp. pseudocarabus Semenov-Tian-Shansky & Redikorzev, 1928
Calosoma (Callisthenes) mirificum (Casale, 1979)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) panderi (Fischer von Waldheim, 1820)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) panderi subsp. panderi (Fischer von Waldheim, 1820)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) panderi subsp. karelini (Fischer von Waldheim, 1830)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) panderi subsp. pavlovskii (Kryzhanovskij, 1955)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) pentheri Apfelbeck, 1918
Calosoma (Callisthenes) pentheri subsp. pentheri Apfelbeck, 1918
Calosoma (Callisthenes) pentheri subsp. relictum Apfelbeck, 1918
Calosoma (Callisthenes) persianum (Morvan, 1974)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) regelianum Morawitz, 1886
Calosoma (Callisthenes) regelianum subsp. regelianum Morawitz, 1886
Calosoma (Callisthenes) regelianum subsp. klapperichi Mandl, 1955
Calosoma (Callisthenes) reticulatum (Fabricius, 1787)
Calosoma (Callisthenes) usgentense Solsky, 1874
Calosoma (Callisthenes) usgentense subsp. usgentense Solsky, 1874
Calosoma (Callisthenes) usgentense subsp. mandli Bruschi, 2013

updated December 28 2020

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