Eucnemidae

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Eucnemidae
Temporal range: Tithonian–Recent
Dirrhagofarsus lewisi
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Suborder: Polyphaga
Infraorder: Elateriformia
Superfamily: Elateroidea
Family: Eucnemidae
Eschscholtz, 1829
Genera
See text
Synonyms
  • Phylloceridae Reitter, 1905
  • Melasidae Leach, 1817
  • Perothopidae Lacordaire, 1857

Eucnemidae, or false click beetles, are a family of elateroid beetles including about 1700 species distributed worldwide.

Description[edit]

Closely related to the family Elateridae, specimens of Eucnemidae can reach a length of 2–30 mm (0.079–1.181 in). Bodies are slightly flattened and convex. The upper surfaces of the body usually has hairs, setae or scales.

Ecology[edit]

The larvae are typically legless, and generally develop feeding on the fluids of rotting wood, likely vomiting digestive enzymes into the wood to break apart the fungal hyphae, moving using their shovel shaped heads to force apart the wood. Adults, which are typically found on broken surfaces of trunks and stumps, have a short lifespan and it is unclear whether they feed, though they are capable fliers, and like some other elateroids are capable of clicking.[1]

Taxonomy[edit]

Subfamilies[edit]

Fossil genera[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Muona, Jyrki. "4.5. Eucnemidae Eschscholtz, 1829". Volume 2 Morphology and Systematics (Elateroidea, Bostrichiformia, Cucujiformia partim), edited by Willy Kükenthal, Richard A.B. Leschen, Rolf G. Beutel and John F. Lawrence, Berlin, New York: De Gruyter, 2011, pp. 61–69
  2. ^ Li, Yan-Da; Tihelka, Erik; Liu, Zhen-Hua; Huang, Diying; Cai, Chen-Yang (2020-08-31). "Muonabuntor gen. nov., a new genus of false click beetles from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber (Coleoptera: Elateroidea: Eucnemidae)". Palaeoentomology. 3 (4): 399–406. doi:10.11646/palaeoentomology.3.4.12. ISSN 2624-2834.