Beetles are 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 described 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, with estimates suggesting that there are between 0.9 and 2.1 million total species. 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.
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 phytophagous or omnivorous.
An elytron is a modified, hardened forewing of beetles (Coleoptera), though a few of the true bugs (Hemiptera) such as the family Schizopteridae are extremely similar; in true bugs, the forewings are called hemelytra, and in most species only the basal half is thickened while the apex is membranous, but when they are entirely thickened the condition is referred to as "coleopteroid". An elytron is sometimes also referred to as a shard.
Kunwar "Billy" Arjan Singh was an Indian hunter turned conservationist and author. He was the first who tried to reintroduce tigers and leopards from captivity into the wild.
Neocicindela tuberculata is a species of tiger beetle in the subfamily Cicindelinae of the family Carabidae, endemic to New Zealand. Its common names include common tiger beetle, moeone, and papapa, and in its laval stage penny doctor, butcher boy, kapuku, kui, kurikuri, moeone, and muremure. Neocicindela tuberculata was the first carabid beetle described from New Zealand. The species can run as fast as 5 miles per hour and are considered to be the fastest running beetles. Adult species prefer clay banks in summer and are good predators when in comes to insects.
Xylotrupes gideon, the brown rhinoceros beetle, is a species of large scarab beetle belonging to the subfamily Dynastinae.
Cicindela aurulenta, common name blue-spotted or golden-spotted tiger beetle, is a beetle of the family Carabidae.
Cicindela albissima, commonly called the Coral Pink Sand Dunes tiger beetle is a species of tiger beetle endemic to Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park in southern Utah, United States. It was originally described by Rumpp in 1962 as the subspecies Cicindela limbata albissima, but mitochondrial DNA, along with the species' morphological and geographical distinctiveness, have shown that it is a separate species. C. albissima can be distinguished from other Cicindela species by its restricted range and lack of pigmentation on its elytra.
Cylindera dromicoides is a species of ground beetle of the subfamily Cicindelinae. It is flightless and has been found mainly along the Himalayas from India through Nepal and Bhutan and in the Chinese province of Yunnan.
Myriochila fastidiosa is a species of tiger beetle found across India and Sri Lanka. The head and pronotum are greenish or coppery and the elytra vary from greenish bronze to coppery. The markings are yellowish. The legs are pale coloured. They are found in open forest and grassland.
Jansenia venus is a species of tiger beetle endemic to the Western Ghats of India. It is found mainly in the summer from May to June inside forest cover. It forages on the ground inside forest but when disturbed it flies and perches on vegetation.
Jansenia dasiodes is a species of tiger beetle endemic to peninsular India.
Calochroa whithillii is a species of tiger beetle found in the Western Ghats of India. It is uniformly greenish blue, sometimes with a single white spot in the middle of the elytra. They are often attracted to artificial lights at night.
Myriochila distinguenda is a species of tiger beetle found in South Asia. It is found mainly on the muddy shoreline around freshwater. The genus Myriochila is characterized by hooked setae on the femora and four hairs on the pale or whitish labrum.
Hypaetha biramosa is a species of tiger beetle found on open sandy beaches in coastal areas across tropical Asia from India to Indonesia.
Calomera fowleri is a species of tiger beetle endemic to peninsular India. It is found foraging on wet sand and riverine areas in the edges of forests. It is somewhat similar to Calomera angulata but that species is found on open sandy beaches, has bolder markings and longer mandibles.
Adoretus bicaudatus, is a species of shining leaf chafer found in India and Sri Lanka.
Heliocopris bucephalus, commonly known as Elephant dung beetle, is a species of dung beetle found in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Malay Peninsula, Java, Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.
Cicindela goryi is a species of tiger beetle from southern India. It was earlier treated as a subspecies of the closely related Cicindela aurofasciata.
Hispa ramosa, is a species of leaf beetle native to India, and Sri Lanka.
