Characteristics
Form elongate oval. Labrum vertically produced with respect to the clypeus; clypeus and mentum with apicomedial projections; antennae with 9 or 10 segments; protibiae tridentate (bidentate in Microchilus), inner protibial spur apical; foretarsomeres usually enlarged in males and/or females and densely setose ventrally (except in Geniatosoma); elytral margin chitinous or membranous; and terminal spiracle positioned in pleural suture.
 
Classification Status

Burmeister (1844) first created the group name "Geniatidae" that included the genera Bolax, Leucothyreus, Evanos, and Geniates. In 1918, Ohaus designated the Geniatini as a tribe within the Rutelinae. This group is poorly known taxonomically. Revisions and keys to species are needed in all the genera, and the taxonomic position of some genera and species needs clarification. The only publications dealing with the tribe as a whole are the Coleopterum Catalogous (Ohaus 1918; Machatschke 1972,1974), the Genera Insectorum (Machatschke 1965), and Blackwelder's (1944) catalog.

Distribution
The tribe Geniatini includes 13 genera and 323 described species. They inhabit semideciduous and cloud forests exclusively in the Neotropics. They occur from Mexico to northern Argentina and Brazil and only one species (Geniates leptopus Ohaus) is known from Chile.

Genera Profiles (click on the species names)

Bolax Lobogeniates
Eunanus Microchilus
Evanos Mimogeniates
Geniates Rhizogeniates
Geniatosoma Trizogeniates
Heterogeniates Xenogeniates
Leucothyreus  

References Cited
BURMEISTER, H. C. C. 1844. Handbuch der Entomologie. (Coleoptera Lamellicornia Anthobia et Phyllophaga Systellochela). Vol. 4 Pt. 1: 1-588. Berlin.

BLACKWELDER, R. E. 1944. Checklist of the coleopterous insects of Mexico, Central America, the West Indies, and South America, Parts 1-6. Bulletin of the United States National Museum 185: 1-1492.

MACHATSCHKE, J. 1965. Coleoptera Lamelicornia. Fam. Scarabaeidae, Subfam. Rutelinae, Section Rutelinae Orthochilidae. Genera Insectorum, Fasc. 199C: 1-145.

MACHATSCHKE, J. 1972.
Scarabaeidae: Melolonthidae, Rutelinae. Coleopterum Catalogus Supplementa. 66(1): 1-361.

MACHATSCHKE, J. 1974.
Scarabaeidae: Melolonthidae, Rutelinae. Coleopterum Catalogus Supplementa. 66(2): 363-429.

OHAUS, F. 1918. Scarabaeidae: Euchirinae, Phaenomerinae, Rutelinae. Coleopterum Catalogus 20: 1-241.