| Tenebrionoidea | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Central European Tenebrionoidea with some anatomical details | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Suborder: | Polyphaga |
| Infraorder: | Cucujiformia |
| Superfamily: | Tenebrionoidea Latreille, 1802 |
| Families | |
See text. | |
The Tenebrionoidea are a very large and diverse superfamily of beetles. [1] It generally corresponds to the Heteromera of earlier authors.
Tenebrionoidea contains the following families:
The largest family by far is Tenebrionidae, with (as of 2014) approximately 20,000 species and almost two-thirds of the species richness of the superfamily. [2]
The Tenebrionoidea show a range of different morphologies. However, one characteristic of most adults is having 5 tarsomeres on the fore- and midlegs, and 4 tarsomeres on the hindleg (tarsal formula 5-5-4). Occasionally, males have tarsal formula reduced to 4-4-4, 3-3-3 or 3-4-4. [2]
Larval Tenebrionoidea can be distinguished by various features of the head: a posteriorly diverging gula with well developed gular ridges, posterior tentorial arms being shifted anteriorly, asymmetric mandibles, the M. craniocardinalis vestigial or absent, and the M. tentoriopharyngalis posterior subdivided into several bundles. The body is usually sub-parallel and slightly flattened, but other shapes have evolved to suit different needs, such as cylindrical for boring larvae, strongly flattened for larvae living under bark, and c-shaped and grub-like for larvae with specialised developmental strategies (e.g. post-triungulin larvae of Rhipiphoridae and Meloidae). [1]
Many tenebrionoid families are fungus feeders, but there are a wide range of other feeding strategies including feeding on wood or on decaying plant material, pollen-feeding (by many Oedemeridae and Anthicidae), and acting as ectoparasitoids of other insects (Ripiphoridae). A small number of species are predators or feed on living plant tissue. [2]
Tenebrionoidea show a particular diversity in arid environments. [2] One adaptation shown by some (e.g. Onymacris unguicularis ) is the ability to gather water from fog in order to drink. [3]
Darkling beetle is the common name for members of the beetle family Tenebrionidae. The number of species in the Tenebrionidae is estimated at more than 20,000 and the family is cosmopolitan in distribution.
Cucujoidea is a superfamily of beetles. This group formerly included all of the families now included in the superfamily Coccinelloidea. They include some fungus beetles and a diversity of lineages of "bark beetles" unrelated to the "true" bark beetles (Scolytinae), which are weevils.
Bostrichoidea is a superfamily of beetles. It is the type superfamily of the infraorder Bostrichiformia.
Pimelia is a genus of darkling beetles in the subfamily Pimeliinae.
Staphylinoidea is a superfamily of beetles. It is a very large and diverse group with worldwide distribution.
The family Pythidae is a small group of beetles with no vernacular common name, though recent authors have coined the name dead log bark beetles. There are about 10 genera and 17 described species in Pythidae.
The family Oedemeridae is a cosmopolitan group of beetles commonly known as false blister beetles, though some recent authors have coined the name pollen-feeding beetles. There are some 100 genera and 1,500 species in the family, mostly associated with rotting wood as larvae, though adults are quite common on flowers. The family was erected by Pierre André Latreille in 1810.
Tenebrioninae is the largest subfamily of the darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae), containing flour beetles, among others. Tenebrioninae contains more than 20 tribes.
The Trictenotomidae are a small family of beetles in the superfamily Tenebrionoidea, containing fifteen species in two genera. Most species are found in the Oriental realm where they live in montane forest habitats. The family is considered, based on larval characters as well as sequence-based studies, to be closely related to the Salpingidae.
Salpingidae or narrow-waisted bark beetles is a family of beetles in the superfamily Tenebrionoidea. The species are small, about 1.5 – 7 mm in length. The family is globally distributed and consists of about 45 genera and 300 species, which are generally found in the temperate regions of both hemispheres. The family is mainly associated with plants as well as with ascomycete and hyphomycete fungi. Some members of the family are associated with unusual habitats, like Aegialites and Antarcticodomus, which are found in coastal areas including the intertidal zone, with former feeding on algae.
Trachelostenus is a genus of beetles belonging to Tenebrionoidea. It is native to the Valdivian forests of Chile, and has at least two species, T. inaequalis (Solier) and T. fascicularis (Philipp). It was historically considered the only member of the family Trachelostenidae, but a 2015 study sunk the genus into the tenebrionid subfamily Tenebrioninae.
The Sepidiini is a tribe of ground-dwelling darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae), that occurs across Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Arabian Peninsula and Mesopotamia. It is composed of many hundreds of species. The larvae of some species are known to damage crops.
The tar darkling beetles (Somaticus) are an Afrotropical genus of darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae). Adults are omnivorous scavengers, and the larvae, known as false wireworms, feed on plant roots. The larvae of several species are known to damage maize crops. The adults are matte black with longitudinal ridges on the pronotum and elytra, and may be covered in hairs of different colours.
Oxacis is a genus of false blister beetles in the family Oedemeridae. There are at least 30 described species in Oxacis.
Ditylus is a genus of false blister beetles in the family Oedemeridae. There are at least four described species in Ditylus.
Tetratoma is a genus of polypore fungus beetles in the family Tetratomidae. There are about 25 described species in Tetratoma.
Alphitobius laevigatus, the black fungus beetle, is a species of darkling beetle in the family Tenebrionidae. It is found in Europe and North America.
Apalus bimaculatus, the early blister beetle, is a species of blister beetle from the family Meloidae. It is the type species of the genus Apalus.
Molurina is a subtribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are 28 genera and 579 described species and subspecies in subtribe Molurina. The type genus for this subtribe is Moluris. These beetles are widely distributed through the Afrotropics, with the exception of western Africa.
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Data related to Tenebrionoidea at Wikispecies