| Pleocoma puncticollis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Pleocoma puncticollis, California | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Family: | Pleocomidae |
| Genus: | Pleocoma |
| Species: | P. puncticollis |
| Binomial name | |
| Pleocoma puncticollis Rivers, 1889 | |
Pleocoma puncticollis, the black rain beetle, is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America. [1] [2] [3]
The rain beetles are a group of beetles whose extant species are found only in the far west of North America. They spend most of their lives underground, emerging in response to rain or snow, thus the common name. Formerly classified in the Scarabaeidae, they are currently assigned to their own family Pleocomidae, considered the sister group to all the remaining families of Scarabaeoidea. The family contains a single extant genus, Pleocoma, and two extinct genera, Cretocoma, described in 2002 from Late Cretaceous deposits in Mongolia, and Proteroscarabeus of Late Cretaceous China.
Pleocoma is the only extant genus of rain beetles and is endemic to the Pacific states of North America. Fossil remains of Pleocoma have been found in the Yixian Formation in China, suggesting beetles in this genus have existed in something like their present form since at least the Cretaceous period. There are 27 described species in Pleocoma.
Pleocoma bicolor is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in western North America.
Pleocoma carinata is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma conjungens, the Santa Cruz rain beetle, is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma dubitabilis is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma crinita is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma marquai is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma minor is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma simi is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma staff is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma octopagina is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma hirticollis is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma fimbriata is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma rubiginosa is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma blaisdelli is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma badia is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma tularensis is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America. This species has one of the most largest ranges in Pleocoma and is found across central and southern Sierra Nevada.[4]
Pleocoma australis, the southern rain beetle, is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.
Pleocoma hoppingi is a species of rain beetle in the family Pleocomidae. It is found in North America.