| Tenebrioninae | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Tenebrio molitor | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Infraorder: | Cucujiformia |
| Family: | Tenebrionidae |
| Subfamily: | Tenebrioninae Latreille, 1802 |
| Tribes | |
Around 20-30, see text | |
Tenebrioninae is the largest subfamily of the darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae), containing flour beetles, among others. Tenebrioninae contains more than 20 tribes.
Adults are robust, mid-sized beetles that typically have elytra with some sort of corrugation on the upper side. They are typically black, dark brown or grey, and often have a satiny sheen. The body is shaped like a medication capsule or like a bullet; the legs can be short and stout or long and spindly. They eat both fresh and decaying vegetation, including vegetable produce, and several are commercially important pests of flour and other cereal products.
The subfamily has been characterized [1] as adults having mandibles with the back opposite the cutting edge, without margination and excavated opposite the molar pait; having ocelli arranged in two transverse, crescent shaped or circular groups on each side of head, and with five more or less fused lenses; having antennae with basal articles noticeably longer than wide; having pygidium that is apically bicomute; and having abdominal spiracles that are oval and transverse, among other characteristics.
Larvae of the tenebrioninae subfamily take after most other tenebrionid larvae: [2] usually cylindrical to slightly flattened, occasionally short and broad, or strongly flattened. The head and all visible tergites or only the head and abdominal apex are heavily sclerotized.
Diagnostic characters for larvae include the presence of a frontoclypeal suture, flat and dome-like antennal sensorium, simple malar apex which is not cleft, simple ninth sternum, annular or annular- multiforous spiracles, and the absence of an endocarina, mandibular prostheca, hypostomal rods, ventral prolegs, and patches or rows of tergal asperites.
Larvae of the yellow mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor) are commonly used as feeder insects for reptiles and amphibians. Other Tenebrio and Tribolium species are also bred as animal food. The red flour beetle (Tribolium castaneum) is a popular genetics model organism, especially in studies of intragenomic conflict and population ecology.
Several species of Tenebrio and Tribolium, such as the confused flour beetle (T. confusum) and T. destructor , and other genera such as Gnathocerus cornutus , are pests of cereal and flour silos and other storage facilities.
The Tenebrioninae are traditionally divided in some 20-30 tribes. The exact delimitation and validity of several of these is unclear. Molecular phylogenetic studies have yielded inconsistent results, perhaps due to hybridization, horizontal gene transfer by Wolbachia bacteria, and insufficient taxon sampling obfuscating the information contained in DNA sequence data. [3] [4]
In some treatments, the Pimeliinae are included as yet another tribe. This may be correct, but as far as can be told they are a closely related but well distinct lineage of Tenebrionidae. The Opatrini are sometimes elevated to familial rank as Opatrinae. The Crypticini, Pentaphyllini, and Scaphidemini are sometimes placed here, but are more commonly located in the Diaperinae. [3] [4]
In research by Kamiński et al. published in 2021, the following tribes were moved from Tenebrioninae into the newly resurrected subfamily Blaptinae. These tribes contained 281 genera and about 4000 species, about 50% of Tenebrioninae. The new classification was followed by Bouchard et al. the same year. [5] [6]
The resulting Tenebrioninae, according to "Review of genus-group names in the family Tenebrionidae" (Bouchard et al. 2021), includes the following tribes: [6]
In addition, the following genera are of uncertain placement in this subfamily:
Darkling beetle is the common name for members of the beetle family Tenebrionidae, comprising over 20,000 species in a cosmopolitan distribution.
Tenebrio obscurus, or the dark mealworm beetle, is a species of darkling beetle whose larvae are known as mini mealworms. These insects should not be confused with younger mealworms or with the confused flour beetle.
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.
Flour beetles are members of several darkling beetle genera including Tribolium and Tenebrio. They are pests of cereal silos and are widely used as laboratory animals, as they are easy to keep. The flour beetles consume wheat and other grains, are adapted to survive in very dry environments, and can withstand even higher amounts of radiation than cockroaches. They are a major pest in the agricultural industry and are highly resistant to insecticides.
Eleodes is a genus of darkling beetles, in the family Tenebrionidae. They are endemic to western North America ranging from southern Canada to central Mexico with many species found along the Mexico-United States border. Some species have been introduced to Colombia. The name pinacate is Mexican Spanish, derived from the Nahuatl (Aztec) name for the insect, pinacatl, which translates as "black beetle."
Opatrini is a tribe of darkling beetles (Tenebrionidae) in the subfamily Tenebrioninae.
Trachelostenus is a genus of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. 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.
Triboliini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are about 10 genera in Triboliini.
Tenebrionini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are at least 20 genera in Tenebrionini.
Asidini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the subfamily Pimeliinae of the family Tenebrionidae. There are more than 30 genera in Asidini.
Blaptinae is a subfamily of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are around 300 genera in Blaptinae, divided into 7 tribes.
Coniontini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the subfamily Pimeliinae of the family Tenebrionidae. There are at least 4 genera in Coniontini, found in North America.
Trachelostenini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are at least three genera in Trachelostenini. It was historically ranked as the family Trachelostenidae, but a 2015 study sunk the family into the tenebrionid subfamily Tenebrioninae.
Amphidorini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are six genera in Amphidorini.
Blaptini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are more than 30 genera recognised in the tribe Blaptini.
Dendarini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are more than 30 genera in Dendarini.
Pedinini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are about 19 genera in Pedinini.
Platynotini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are more than 70 genera in Platynotini.
Platyscelidini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the family Tenebrionidae. There are about eight genera in Platyscelidini.
Data related to Tenebrioninae at Wikispecies
Media related to Tenebrioninae at Wikimedia Commons