O. Merkl szerk.: Folia Entomologica Hungarica 68. (Budapest, 2007)

C. monilis FABRICIUS, 1792 and C. rothi as species, the rest of the taxa are either treated as valid subspecies or listed as "possible synonyms" of these. In his system, C. rothi hampei is a valid subspecies with six of these "not formally synonymized infrasubspecific taxa", and numerous other names are listed as their synonyms. In the new edition of the Käfer Mitteleuropas (MÜLLER-MOTZFELD 2004) the concept of the species is closer to that of TURIN et al. (2003). The present work attempts to review and illustrate the subspecies of C. hampei - this is here accepted as a valid species based mostly on the morphology of the inner sac of the aedeagus (such approach was first attempted by lSHIKAWA 1973). This species is of special importance in Hungary as being one of the six strictly protected beetle species and amongst these one of the three Carabus species. THE HISTORY OF THE STUDY OF CARABUS HAMPEI Romania (Transylvania) - The taxon C. hampei was described by KÜSTER based on material from "Transylvania" without more exact locality data (BREUNING 1932). Later it turned out that the distribution of the nominal subspecies is limited to Southern Transylvania, along the river Mures from Chinari (Várhegy) to Ilia (Marosillye) and along river Tarnava (Küküllő) from Odorheiu Secuiesc (Székelyudvarhely). According to our current concept, there are 11 subspecies in Romania (Transylvania), most of these were originally described by CSIKI (1906a, 1923) as infrasubspecific taxa. LIE (1992) described further two subspecies, and LIE & KLEINFELD (2001) treated all the subspecies occuring in Transylvania (Romania). Hungary - In Hungary only the subspecies C. hampei ormayi REITTER, 1896 occurs. It was first collected by F. LlCHTNECKERT, D. KANABÉ and Z. NAROZSNYI in the 1920s and 1930s, the localities were Nagyar and Szatmárcseke in Szabolcs-Szatmár county. It was then not collected for almost 60 years (SZÉL 1987). A university thesis by S ZALAI (1994) and papers ofKÖDÖBÖCZ& MAGURA ( 1999,2005) give details of the currently known Hungarian distribution and main habitat types. Ukraine - In Ukraine, as a continuation of its area in Hungary, the subspecies C. hampei ormayi occurs (MAGURA et al. 1997). Localities of this subspecies are listed in KÖDÖBÖCZ & MAGURA (2005), where some Hungarian localities are also mentioned. This work was focused on the different habitat types the taxon is associated with. The montane subspecies C. hampei mendax CSIKI, 1906 also occurs in Ukraine (Maramaros Mts).