Biogeographical and Ecological Limits of New World Passalidae (coleoptera)

In the New World, beetles of the primarily tropical family Passalidae occur in rotting wood from southern Michigan and southern Ontario to northern Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, and southern Brazil. They are found in the West Indies, Isla del Coco, and Galapagos Islands. They are not known from the forests of southern Chile or the Pacific North-West, except for the only known fossil of the family from the Oligocene of Oregon. A few species, mostly Proculini, are encountered above 2800 m elevation. The most widely distributed species are those of the tropical lowlands below 1500 m. Most species occur in moist forests, though some species occur in dry forests and even in nests of desert ants. Most species live in hardwood but some are found in conifers and a few in palms. Passalids are occasionally found in other microhabitats, possibly including limestone caves inhabited by oilbirds. New records are cited for various species from Peru, Costa Rica, Belize, Mexico, Trinidad, and Grenada.