Recent research indicates that
Trogoderma is polyphyletic, comprising two distinct, unrelated lineages. One lineage corresponds to
Trogoderma sensu stricto - a primarily Holarctic clade that includes the type species
Trogoderma glabrum and the economically significant
Khapra beetle (
Trogoderma granarium). The other lineage, formerly considered part of
Trogoderma, represents a distinct Southern Hemisphere clade, reclassified under the previously synonymized genus
Eurhopalus. This clade includes species previously assigned to several genera:
Sodaliatoma Háva, monotypic
Reesa Beal,
Psacus Pascoe,
Neoanthrenus Armstrong,
Anthrenocerus Arrow, and
Myrmeanthrenus Armstrong. This classification is not yet accepted by all researchers. For example, in the 2023 world catalogue of Dermestidae many of the genera previously synonymized were re-evaluated and reinstated as separate genera, despite genetic and morphological analyses suggesting otherwise.
Neoanthrenus The synonymized genus
Neoanthrenus was originally defined in 1941. However, in 2013, researchers reclassified the species of the genus, placing them under the subgenus
Nathrenus within
Anthrenus. This taxonomic change did not take into account the considerable morphological differences between the adults and larvae of
Neoanthrenus species and those of
Anthrenus, and later authors recognize significant distinctions between these groups. Further
phylogenetic studies in 2006, along with molecular analyses in 2022, support the distinction between these two genera, and place
Neoanthrenus as a synonym of
Eurhopalus rather than
Anthrenus. ==References==