| Austrophthalma raffrayi | |
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| Genus: | Austrophthalma Dajoz, 1966 |
| Species: | A. raffrayi |
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| Austrophthalma raffrayi Dajoz, 1966 | |
Austrophthalma raffrayi is a species of beetle in the family Latridiidae, the only species in the genus Austrophthalma. [1]
Beetles are a group of insects that form the order Coleoptera, in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 species, is the largest of all orders, constituting almost 40% of described insects and 25% of all known animal life-forms; new species are discovered frequently. The largest of all families, the Curculionidae (weevils) with some 80,000 member species, belongs to this order. Found in almost every habitat except the sea and the polar regions, they interact with their ecosystems in several ways: beetles often feed on plants and fungi, break down animal and plant debris, and eat other invertebrates. Some species are serious agricultural pests, such as the Colorado potato beetle, while others such as Coccinellidae eat aphids, scale insects, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects that damage crops.
Latridiidae is a family of tiny, little-known beetles commonly called minute brown scavenger beetles. The number of described species currently stands at around 1050 in 29 genera but the number of species is undoubtedly much higher.
