British insects: the families of Coleoptera
British insects: the families of Coleoptera |
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Including Thorictidae, Thylodriidae, Thylodriadidae.
Museum, Carpet, Skin, Hide, Larder, Leather (etc.) Beetles.
General appearance. 1.5–8 mm long. Body length/maximum body width 1.42–3. Elytral length/pronotal length 1.72–5.33. Base of prothorax not or scarcely narrower than the combined elytral bases, or distinctly narrower than the combined elytral bases. Greatest prothoracic width not narrower or only slightly narrower than the greatest elytral width, or distinctly narrower than greatest elytral width. Beetles oval to elongate (generally robust); having ventral body cavities into which the legs fold to conform with the general body surface, or without ventral body cavities for reception of the legs (?); not necked; not waisted to somewhat waisted; without ‘warning colouration’. Upper surfaces of body glabrous or subglabrous, or non-glabrous; exhibiting stiff, erect, dark bristles, or not bristly; exhibiting scales or scale-like setae, or with neither scales nor scale-like setae.
Detailed morphology. Inclination of the head slight to very strong. Eyes strongly protuberant, or not strongly protuberant; bristly, or without bristles. Ocelli present, or absent; when present, solitary (median). Antennae very short to short; 9 segmented, or 11 segmented. Antennal scape not swollen. Antennae clubbed. Antennal clubs 3–5 segmented; preceded by a cupule, or without a cupule. Antennal insertions visible from above. Prothorax shorter than wide. Pronotal length/maximum pronotal width 0.37–1. Prothorax at its widest not markedly narrower than the adjoining part of the abdomen. Prothorax without notopleural sutures. Hind corners of the thorax not extended rearwards into sharp points. Metaventrite without a transverse groove. Tarsal segmentation formula 5, 5, 5, or 5, 5, 4. The tarsi without bilobed segments; with a tiny penultimate segment hidden by distal lobing of the fourth and fused to the fifth (hind tarsi, sometimes), or with a tiny basal segment that is hard to detect, or without ‘hidden’ segments. Front tarsi with as many segments as the mid-tarsi; 5-segmented. Mid-leg tarsi 5-segmented; pentamerous. The claws of the mid-leg tarsi not appendaged. The claws of the mid-leg tarsi simple. Hind tarsi with as many segments as the mid-tarsi; 5-segmented. Elytral length/maximum width across the elytra 1–2.35. Elytra covering most to all of the abdomen; exposing no more than part of the terminal tergite, or at least three complete abdominal tergites; not truncate. Scutellary striole absent. Elytra non-glabrous (often covered with fine hair or scales), or glabrous. Wings well developed, or absent or much reduced. Exposed abdominal sternites 5; all articulated and movable, or comprising both fused and movable components; immovably joined when present, 2. Abdominal segment 8 with apparently functional spiracles.
Adult habitat, ecology. Land-dwellers; not predacious; in living vegetation (often on flowers).
Larvae. Larvae not predacious; feeding on dried animal remains (on material of high protein content, e.g. skins, bacon, etc.); in carrion and in stored plant products (and and other human foodstuffs). The scarabaeiform larvae subcylindrical, elongate- to short-oval and clothed with long setae, six well developed legs, antennae 3-segmented, 3 to 6 lateral ocelli.
Classification. Suborder Polyphaga; Superfamily Dermestoidea.
Worldwide and British representation. 500–700 species worldwide. 30 species in Britain; genera in Britain 9; Anthrenocerus, Anthrenus, Attagenus, Ctesias, Dermestes, Globicornis, Thylodrias, Trinodes, Trogoderma. E.g., Ctesias serra (Toothed-horn Megatoma); Dermestes lardarius.
Illustrations. • Attagenus trifasciatus (Adventive: B. Ent. 247). • Attagenus trifasciatus: B. Ent. 247, legend+text. • Attagenus trifasciatus: B. Ent. 247, text cont.. • Ctesias serra (Toothed-horn Megatoma: B. Ent. 244). • Ctesias serra: B. Ent. 244, legend+text. • Ctesias serra: B. Ent. 244, text cont.. • Dermestes lardarius: B. Ent. 682. • Dermestes lardarius: B. Ent. 682, legend+text. • Dermestes lardarius: B. Ent. 682, text cont.. • Anthrenus, Ctesias, Megatoma, Trinodes (with Byrrhidae, etc.): Fowler 3, 97 (1889). • Fowler 3, 97 (1889): original legend.. • Attagenus pellio, A. trifasciatus and Dermestes (3 spp.), with Mycetophagidae: Fowler 3, 96 (1889). • Fowler 3, 96 (1889): original legend.. • Globicornis nigripes (with Cryptophagidae, Dryopidae, etc.): Fowler Suppl. 14, 1913. • Fowler 6, 14 (1913): original legend.. • Dermestes lardarius (Janson 177).
To view the illustrations with detailed captions, go to the interactive key. This also offers full and partial descriptions, diagnostic descriptions, differences and similarities between taxa, lists of taxa exhibiting or lacking specified attributes, and distributions of character states within any set of taxa.
Cite this publication as: ‘Watson, L., and Dallwitz, M.J. 2003 onwards. British insects: the families of Coleoptera. Version: 2nd January 2012. http://delta-intkey.com’.
