| Brachypsectra fulva | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Suborder: | Polyphaga |
| Infraorder: | Elateriformia |
| Family: | Brachypsectridae |
| Genus: | Brachypsectra |
| Species: | B. fulva |
| Binomial name | |
| Brachypsectra fulva LeConte, 1883 | |
Brachypsectra fulva is a species of beetle in the Brachypsectridae family commonly known as the Texas beetle.
B. fulva occurs in Mexico and in the southern United States in the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas and Utah. [1] [2]
This beetle has a light brown elongated oval body between four and eight millimetres long. The head is slightly wider than it is long and there are globular, protruding eyes. The antennae have ten segments, the distal six expanded on one side to form pectinate clubs, though these are less developed in the female. The prothorax is wider than it is long and widest posteriorly. The elytra have nine weakly impressed punctate striae and are broadly rounded at the posterior. The hind wings are as long as they are wide and have oblique, apically dividing, linear sclerites. The male beetle is smaller than the female and is much the same width for most of its length whereas the female is broadest in the posterior third of its length. [1]
The larva is pale coloured, up to fifteen millimetres long, flattened and broadly ovate. The head is dark and much narrower than the prothorax. The antennae and legs are well developed. There are fairly long lateral lobes lined with elongate feathery lobules on all the thoracic segments and on the first eight abdominal segments. The upper side is armed with heavily sclerotized, scale-like setae. The posterior abdominal segments are much narrower and darker coloured and form a short tail which may be held in an elevated position. [1]
The number of instars and the length of the life cycle are not known, but in captivity, some larvae lived for over two years without feeding. [3] Some larvae reared by M. K. Thayer moulted twice before pupating. The cocoon was surrounded by a silken net connecting the two sides of the narrow pupation chamber. The beetle emerged after about six weeks. [4]
Though the larvae of this beetle had been known for a long time, they were described by Gordon Floyd Ferris in 1927 as an "entomological enigma". [5] This was because it had not previously been known into what adult form they would develop.
Adult beetles are seldom seen but they are attracted by light and the males are on the wing between May and August. The larvae are found under loose bark on trees, in leaf litter and in cracks in rocks. There seems to be no association with any particular plant group but they choose habitats that are rich in insects and other arthropods. The larvae are predators that ambush their prey. They are well camouflaged and remain stationary until approached by prey. Food species include small spiders, pseudoscorpions, cockroaches, termites, and beetle larvae in the families Trogossitidae, Nitidulidae and Tenebrionidae. [6]
In a research study, larvae in captivity were offered spiders in the genus Metepeira . They made no effort to pounce on the spiders, but when one climbed on the back of the larva, it arched its tail and head, trapping the spider between the tail spine and the mandibles. The larva then devoured the spider, at the same time relaxing its tail. In another study, several spiders were released in the presence of a single larva and they were all later found congregated on its back. The researchers thought it possible that the larva released an allomone which attracted the spiders. [7]
The telephone-pole beetle is a beetle native to the eastern United States and the only known living representative of the otherwise extinct family Micromalthidae. Larvae of the beetle live in decaying wood and can be pests to wooden structures, lending them their common name, the 'telephone-pole beetle.'
Dermestidae are a family of Coleoptera that are commonly referred to as skin beetles. Other common names include larder beetle, hide or leather beetles, carpet beetles, and khapra beetles. There are over 1,800 species described.
The huhu beetle is a longhorn beetle endemic to New Zealand. It is the heaviest beetle found in New Zealand.
The Phoridae are a family of small, hump-backed flies resembling fruit flies. Phorid flies can often be identified by their escape habit of running rapidly across a surface rather than taking flight. This behaviour is a source of one of their alternate names, scuttle fly. Another vernacular name, coffin fly, refers to Conicera tibialis. About 4,000 species are known in 230 genera. The most well-known species is cosmopolitan Megaselia scalaris. At 0.4 mm in length, the world's smallest fly is the phorid Euryplatea nanaknihali.
The varied carpet beetle is a 3 mm-long beetle belonging to the family Dermestidae, positioned in subgenus Nathrenus. They are a common species, often considered a pest of domestic houses and, particularly, natural history museums, where the larvae may damage natural fibers and can damage carpets, furniture, clothing, and insect collections. A. verbasci was also the first insect to be shown to have an annual behavioral rhythm and to date remains a classic example of circannual cycles in animals.
The Lymexylidae, also known as ship-timber beetles, are a family of wood-boring beetles. Lymexylidae belong to the suborder Polyphaga and are the sole member of the superfamily Lymexyloidea.
This glossary of entomology describes terms used in the formal study of insect species by entomologists.
Cleridae are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea. They are commonly known as checkered beetles. The family Cleridae has a worldwide distribution, and a variety of habitats and feeding preferences.
Syntelia is a genus of beetles. It is the only genus in the family Synteliidae. There are seven known species, which are native to high-elevation regions in southern North America from central Mexico to Guatemala, and in eastern Asia, from India to Japan and eastern Russia. They are generally associated with rotting logs, typically found under bark, though the Mexican species S. westwoodi has been found inside large decaying columnar cacti. Adults and larvae are predatory, feeding on insect larvae. A fossil species, Syntelia sunwukong, is known from the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) aged Burmese amber of Myanmar. Adults are around 1–3.5 centimetres (0.39–1.38 in) in length. The characteristics of the family and genus include geniculate antennae with 3-segmented club, elongate body, narrowly separated coxae and tarsi with bisetose empodia. Only one abdominal segment is exposed behind elytra. The genus described by John O. Westwood in 1864, while the family was erected by George Lewis in 1882. They are members of Histeroidea, which also includes clown beetles (Histeridae).
Nicrophorus interruptus is a species of burying beetle or sexton beetle belonging to the family Silphidae subfamily Nicrophorinae.
Oiceoptoma noveboracense is a member of the family Silphidae, or carrion beetles, which feed on decaying organic matter such as dead animals. Its common name is the margined carrion beetle, from the orange-red margins on the pronotum, which are helpful when identifying this species. The larva is typically light brown to red and also has vertical ridges on its thorax like the adult. This diurnal beetle can be found mainly in the spring into the fall, and it has a strong preference towards a deciduous forest habitat. The primary forensic importance of this beetle is its ability to use the succession of insect fauna to provide confirmation of postmortem intervals.
Dermestes frischii is a species of beetle found in the Palearctic, including Europe, tropical Africa, the Near East, the Nearctic, North Africa and East Asia. In Europe, it is known from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Corsica, Croatia, the Czech Republic, mainland Denmark, European Turkey, Finland, mainland France, Germany, mainland Greece, Hungary, mainland Italy, Kaliningrad, Moldova, North Macedonia, mainland Norway (doubtful), Poland, Russia, Sardinia, Sicily, Slovakia, mainland Spain, Sweden, Ukraine and Yugoslavia.
Callipogon relictus is a species of longhorn beetle which is mostly found in Korea, but also in China and southern part of Russian Far East. It inhabits mixed and deciduous forests. The population of Callipogon relictus is decreasing due to deforestation and uncontrolled collection, and therefore the species are listed in the Russian Red Book.
The Brachypsectridae are a family of beetles commonly known as the Texas beetles. There are only two extant genera, Brachypsectra and Asiopsectra. Brachypsectra has a cosmopolitan distribution, mostly in arid regions, while Asiopsectra is found in Central Asia and the Middle East.
Lanelater mastersii is a species of click beetle belonging to the family Elateridae.
Anthrenus flavipes is a species of beetle in the family Dermestidae known by the common name furniture carpet beetle. It has a cosmopolitan distribution, occurring throughout the world, being most active in warmer climates. It is a pest that damages household materials such as textiles.
Campyloxenus is a bioluminescent genus of click beetles in the family Elateridae, and had been the sole member of the subfamily Campyloxeninae, until another monotypic genus Malalcahuello was described from Chile in 2015 as its new member. There is one described species in Campyloxenus, Campyloxenus pyrothorax, from southwestern Chile and Argentina.
Notosacantha vicaria is a species of leaf beetle native to India, and Sri Lanka.
Silana farinosa, commonly known as curry-leaf tortoise beetle, is a species of leaf beetle native to Indo-China, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and introduced to Peninsular Malaysia.
Perothops is a genus of false click beetles in the family Eucnemidae containing 3 species. They are known as beech-tree beetles or perothopid beetles. They are small as they are only 10–18 millimeters long. It is the only genus in the monotypic subfamily Perothopinae. They are dark-colored beetles that are found across the United States, generally in forests. The genus was discovered by Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz in 1836. It used to be considered a family not part of Eucnemidae. The genus's name is from Greek, translating to "maimed/crippled eye" or "eye of little necklaces/bands", referring to the placement of perothopid eyes.