Language: English with bilingual summary in English and Maori
This volume covers the Trechini beetles, small or medium-sized ground beetles that require high humidity. Almost half the known New Zealand trechine species are found in caves, which provide an environment close to 100% humidity, and these are highly modified for an underground life. Surface-dwelling species also require high humidity and are usually found along streamsides or in beach gravel below the high water mark.
Currently there are 33 species of trechines known from New Zealand, all of which are endemic except one. Amongst New Zealand's relatively few species are some lineages that are apparently not present in Australia, Tasmania, or South America, giving rise to some interesting biogeographic questions. Although the number of New Zealand's trechine species is small on a world scale, they are a special part of our biota because they are one of the most diverse groups of cave insects, they occupy unusual habitats, and they show extreme adaptations to the hostile environments in which they live.