Ground beetles are a large, cosmopolitan family of beetles, the Carabidae, with more than 40,000 species worldwide, around 2,000 of which are found in North America and 2,700 in Europe. As of 2015, it is one of the 10 most species-rich animal families. They belong to the Adephaga. Members of the family are primarily carnivorous, but some members are herbivorous or omnivorous.
Chlamydoselachus is a genus of sharks and the sole extant member of the family Chlamydoselachidae, in the order Hexanchiformes. It contains two extant and four extinct species. The most widely known species still surviving is the frilled shark. It is known as a living fossil, along with Chlamydoselachus africana, also known as the southern African frilled shark, which is only found along coastal areas of South Africa. The only two extant species of this genus are deep-sea creatures which are typically weakened in areas closer to the surface. While the two extant species are similar in external appearance, they differ internally.
Sericoda is a genus of harpaline ground beetles. They are native to the Holarctic. Their habit resembles some members of the related genus Agonum, but they are generally smaller. The origin of Sericoda is apparently North America, with the Central American genus Elliptoleus the closest living relative.
The Andaman scops owl is a species of the Strigidae family and is native to the Andaman Islands of India. It is a largely brown owl with white speckles and yellow eyes. The owl was first described in 1873 by British Ornithologist Allan Octavian Hume. The Andaman Scops Owl has no sightings outside of the Andaman Islands, therefore research on this bird is limited. This owl is not threatened, though an increase in deforestation on the islands has led to the population size slowly declining. It is a nocturnal owl that feeds at night and has a nesting season from February to April.
Georissus, also called minute mud-loving beetles, is the only genus in the beetle family Georissidae. They are tiny insects living in wet soil, often near water. They are found on every continent except Antarctica.
Antarctica is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest continent, being about 40% larger than Europe, and has an area of 14,200,000 km2 (5,500,000 sq mi). Most of Antarctica is covered by the Antarctic ice sheet, with an average thickness of 1.9 km (1.2 mi).
Trechinae is a subfamily of ground beetles in the family Carabidae. There are 6 tribes, more than 430 genera, and over 6,700 described species in Trechinae.
Honduranillus is a genus of ground beetles in the family Carabidae. This genus has a single species, Honduranillus balli.
Waiputrechus is a genus of beetles in the family Carabidae, containing a single species endemic to New Zealand. Waiputrechus cavernicola is known only from a single specimen collected in 1999 by Maree Hunt from a rocky wall inside a cave, Mert's Muddle, near Waipu. It has been classified as "nationally critical" under the New Zealand Threat Classification System.
Trechus cumberlandus is a species of ground beetle in the subfamily Trechinae. It was described by Barr in 1962.
Clinidium balli is a species of ground beetle in the subfamily Rhysodinae. It was described by R.T. & J.R. Bell in 1985. It is named after George Ball, a friend of the describers of this species. It is known from the Mexican state of Hidalgo. Specimens in the type series measure 5–6 mm (0.20–0.24 in) in length.
Harpalus balli is a species of ground beetle in the subfamily Harpalinae. It was described by Noonan in 1991.
Amblytelus balli is a species of ground beetle in the subfamily Psydrinae. It was described by Baehr in 2004.
Amblytelus niger is a species of ground beetle in the subfamily Psydrinae. It was described by Sloane in 1920.
Mecyclothorax balli is a species of ground beetle in the subfamily Psydrinae. It was described by Perrault in 1978.
Blennidus balli is a species of ground beetle in the subfamily Pterostichinae. It was described by Straneo in 1991.
Pelmatellus balli is a species of ground beetle in the genus Pelmatellus.
Euproctinus balli is a species of ground beetle in the family Carabidae. It is found in North America.
Anillinus balli is a species of ground beetle in the family Carabidae. It is found in North America.
George Eugene Ball was an American entomologist and expert in ground beetles (Carabidae). Born in Detroit, Michigan, he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II, where he served in the Battle of Okinawa. He earned his B.A. from Cornell University in 1949 and his M.S. from the University of Alabama in 1950. He returned to Cornell where he earned his PhD in 1954, and that same year joined the University of Alberta, becoming a full professor in 1965. He went on to serve as the entomology department's chair (1974–84) before retiring in 1992. He was a past president of the Entomological Society of Canada and The Coleopterists Society, received the 1980 Gold Medal from the Entomological Society of Canada for outstanding achievement in entomology, and was a Fellow of the Entomological Society of America. He produced over 130 scientific papers, edited five books, and supervised 40 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. Antarctotrechus balli is named after him.
