Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera, in the superorder Holometabola. 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 species; 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.
The longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae), also known as long-horned or longicorns, are a large family of beetles, with over 35,000 species described. Most species are characterized by extremely long antennae, which are often as long as or longer than the beetle's body. In various members of the family, however, the antennae are quite short and such species can be difficult to distinguish from related beetle families such as the Chrysomelidae. The scientific name of this beetle family goes back to a figure from Greek mythology: after an argument with nymphs, the shepherd Cerambus was transformed into a large beetle with horns.
Lamiinae, commonly called flat-faced longhorns, are a subfamily of the longhorn beetle family (Cerambycidae). The subfamily includes over 750 genera, rivaled in diversity within the family only by the subfamily Cerambycinae.
The Disteniidae are a small family of beetles in the superfamily Chrysomeloidea, traditionally treated as a group within the Cerambycidae.
Bothriospilini is a tribe of beetles in the subfamily Cerambycinae, containing 11 genera which have a primarily neotropical distribution. The tribe was proposed in 1950 by Brazilian entomologist Frederico Lane as a member of the new subfamily Bothriospilinae, and with Bothriospila assigned as the type genus. The tribe is morphologically close to the tribe Torneutini, with which it has in common the same shape of the last abdominal segment, which is wide and largely braided in the female, as well as the anterior thigh cavities that are open from behind and the laterally open medial cavity.
Bothriospila is a genus of beetles in the family Cerambycidae, and the type genus of the tribe Bothriospilini. It contains two species: the type, Bothriospila elegans, found in Brazil and Paraguay, and Bothriospila pulcherrima, found in Brazil. The latter was described as a new species from Brazil in 2012. Bothriospila was circumscribed in 1923 by Swedish entomologist Per Olof Christopher Aurivillius.
Callichromatini is a tribe of beetles in the subfamily Cerambycinae, which include the following genera:
Monnechroma is a genus of beetles in the family Cerambycidae, containing the following species:
Oxylymma is a genus of beetles in the family Cerambycidae. The genus occurs in Central and South America, from Guatemala to Bolivia and Brazil.
Parevander xanthomelas is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It was described by Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville in 1844, and has been classified in the genus Parevander since the circumscription of that genus by Per Olof Christopher Aurivillius in 1912.
Callichroma auricomum is a species of Callichroma in the family Cerambycidae.
Mionochroma electrinum is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It was described by Gounelle in 1911. It is known from Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, and Uruguay.
Monnechroma seabrai is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It was described by S. A. Fragoso and Miguel A. Monné in 1989. It is known from southeastern Brazil.
Monnechroma tibiale is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It was described by Giesbert in 1987. It is known from Costa Rica.
Callimoxys is a genus of long-horned beetles in the family Cerambycidae. There are about eight described species in Callimoxys.
Adetus curupira is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It was described by Galileo and Martins in 2006.
Irundiaba waorani is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae, and the only species in the genus Irundiaba. It was described by Martins & Galileo in 2008.
Potiatuca is a genus of beetles in the family Cerambycidae, containing the following species:
Dmytro Zajciw was a Ukrainian and Brazilian entomologist, notable for his collection and for his many beetle discoveries. He was born in Velyka Mykhailivka, Ukraine and died in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He was the author of Two new genera and species of neotropical Longhorn beetles , 1957, Contribution to the study of Longhorn beetles of Rio de Janeiro , 1958, and was the first to describe the genera Adesmoides and Pseudogrammopsis, as well as the species Beraba angusticollis and Mionochroma subaurosum, among many others.
Phanaeini is a tribe of dung beetles in the family Scarabaeidae. There are about 12 genera and 200 described species in Phanaeini. They are native to the Americas with the highest species richness in the Neotropics. They are mostly coprophagous or necrophagous, but some of the least known genera appear to be myrmecophilous. They are medium-sized to large beetles, often with bright metallic colors, and often with horns on their heads.
