| Uniramia |
| --Centipedes |
| --Hexapoda 1 (insects) |
| --Hexapoda 2 (insects) |
| --Hexapoda 3 (insects) |
| --Identification to order level |
| --Insect orders |
| ----Lepidoptera (butterflies, moths) |
| ----Ephemeroptera (mayflies) |
| ----Hemiptera (bugs, cicadas) |
| ----Hymenoptera (bees, ants, wasps & saw flies) |
| ------Bumblebees |
| ----Coleoptera (beetles) |
| ----Dictyoptera (mantids, cockroaches) |
| ----Diptera (true flies) |
| ----Neuroptera (lacewings, ant lions) |
| ----Orthoptera (crickets, locusts) |
| ----Thysanura (bristletails, silver fish) |
| ----Strepsiptera (stylops) |
| ----Thysanoptera (thrips) |
| ----Odonata (dragonflies, damselflies) |
| ----Trichoptera (caddis flies) |
| ----Siphonaptera (fleas) |
| ----Isoptera (termites) |
| ----Phasmida (stick & leaf insects) |
| ----Dermaptera (earwigs) |
| ----Anoplura/siphunculata (sucking lice) |
| ----Mallophaga (biting lice, bird lice) |
| ----Psocoptera (book, bark, dust lice) |
| ----Mecoptera (scorpion flies) |
| ----Collembola (springtail) |
| ----Embioptera (web spinners) |
| ----Plecoptera (stone flies) |
| ----Diplura (bristletails) |
| ----Protura |
| ----Zoraptera |
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On this page beetle fast facts, diagram of adult beetle body, list of beetles featured, drawing of the typical body shape of each family
Fast facts about
Coleoptera (beetles) |
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Over 400 000 species
described to date (20 000 in Europe, 4000 in UK), and the back rooms of museums
are full of more new species. That's more than all the vascular plants, and six
times the number of vertebrates. So if you want to be remembered fund taxonomy
and have a beetle named after you!
They are found in every habitat except salt water and polar ice caps.
The order Coleoptera is divided
into around 170 different families.
They are holometabolous, i.e.
they undergo complete metamorphosis with a distinct larval, pupal and adult
stage. With the principal feeding as a larva, and the sexually mature stage as
an adult. So every adult beetle you see was once an egg, a larva, a pup, and finally the adult beetle.
Adults range in length from 0.25 - 200.00 mm, and up to 75.00 mm in width.
Most have two pairs of wings,
with the front pair (elytra) forming a hard, protective covering over the rear
membranous flight wings.
They have biting mouthparts.
Glowworms are not worms, but
beetles belonging to the family Lampyridae.
When attacked or handled roughly they can reflex bleed a brown fluid which tastes bad, causing some predators to drop them.
The first beetles were around in the Permian. |
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Beetle body
parts
1. antenna
2. maxillary
palp
3. labial palp
4. mandible
5. compound eye
6. labrum
7.
clypeus
8. pronotum
9. elytron
10. scutellum
11. femur
12.
tibia
13. tarsus
14. labium
15. mentum
16 - 21 abdominal sternites,
21 aka anal sternite |
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