Hoplia coerulea

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Hoplia coerulea
Hoplia coerulea, male

Hoplia coerulea , male

Systematics
Order : Beetle (Coleoptera)
Subordination : Polyphaga
Superfamily : Scarabaeoidea
Family : Rutelidae
Genre : Hoplia
Type : Hoplia coerulea
Scientific name
Hoplia coerulea
( Drury , 1773)
Fig. 1: male

Hoplia coerulea is a beetle from the family Rutelidae , which belongs to the scarab beetles in the broader sense. The genus Hoplia is represented in Europe with 39 species. The species coerulea , which isstriking because of its iridescent color, is only found in south-western Europe. Theanimals foundin Mallorca have been described as the subspecies Hoplia coerulea cosimii , but this view has not caught on .

The species name coerulea from Latin "coerūlĕus" for "blue" refers to the conspicuous sky-blue scale of the male beetle. The generic name Hoplia is from Altgr. ὀπλή "hoplē" derived for the "unsplit hoof" and alludes to the fact that the claws on the hind legs are not designed as a pair of claws, but that the hind tarsi only have one claw.

Characteristics of the beetle

The eight to ten millimeter long beetle is bulky. In the male, the upper side is densely covered with iridescent azure blue scales, in the female the scales are less dense and brown. The underside of both has gold to silver scales. The color of the males can be explained by the microstructure of the approximately 3.5 micrometer thick scales, in which there are about 22 parallel layers of chitin, which are coated on the upper side by small, parallel rods. When water is absorbed, the color shifts to the emerald green area.

The head shield is raised at the front edge, especially at the corners, and slightly curved inwards. It covers the upper lip and the upper jaw . The antennae are nine-parted in both sexes, which is not the case, for example, with Hoplia praticola . They end in a three-part, fan-shaped spreadable club.

The pronotum is narrowest at the front edge and without a membranous seam, and broadest behind the middle. The rear edge has protruding outer corners and is edged inward just before it.

The legs are strong, the front legs designed as grave legs. The front splints have three teeth on the outer edge, of which the middle one protrudes at right angles from the splint surface and is closer to the basal tooth (recognizable on the taxo image with a higher resolution). The movable spine that we find in related species is missing on the inside. The broad rear rails and hind legs run almost parallel (Fig. 1). An end pin is missing on all rails. The inner claws on the fore and middle tarsi are much weaker than the outer claws, while the inner claws are missing in the rear tarsi. All claws are unsplit.

biology

The beetle can be found from May to August on meadows along watercourses from sea level to mountainous locations. He is usually sociable. During the mating season, the males sit on an elevated spot (bushes, tall perennials) in full sunshine. They remain motionless, with one or both hind legs spreading backwards and upwards. The females, usually hidden in the ground or in the vegetation, suddenly seek out the males and copulate when they are ready to mate. A copulation time of only thirteen seconds was documented during a film recording. For the genus it is stated: The eggs are laid in the earth. The larvae hatch after about two weeks and feed on roots. The adults feed mainly on sweet grasses .

Hazard and protection

The species' ability to spread is very limited, but the beetle is often found en masse in isolated sites. Due to the anthropogenic changes along the watercourses, more and more populations are disappearing. In Spain the beetle is classified as endangered. Habitat protection and a ban on collecting are proposed as protective measures .

distribution

The species occurs only in Western Europe, reports are only available from Spain , France , the Balearic Islands and Switzerland . In France the beetle is absent north of the Loire, in Spain its occurrence is limited to the north-west. Only old finds are available from North Africa.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Hoplia coerulea in Fauna Europaea. Retrieved February 2, 2012
  2. ↑ Hoplia at Fauna Europaea. Retrieved February 2, 2012
  3. ↑ a b Guido Sabatinelli: " Hoplia coerulea cosimii , nueva sottospecie dell'isola di Mallorca (Baleari)" Boll. Soc. Ent. ital., Genova, 122 (3) 225-227, January 21, 1991 as PDF
  4. ^ E. Mico & E. Galante: "Nuevas sinonimias para las especies del género Hoplia Illiger (Coleoptera)" Boln. Asoc. esp. Ent., 26 (1-2): 2002: 39-43 ISSN  0210-8984 as PDF
  5. ↑ Sigmund Schenkling: Explanation of the scientific beetle names.
  6. ↑ Jean Pol Vigneron, Jean-François Colomer, Nathalie Vigneron, Virginie Lousse: "Natural layer-by-layer photonic structure in the squamae of Hoplia coerulea (Coleoptera)" PHYSICAL REVIEW E 72, 061904 2005 doi : 10.1103 / PhysRevE.72.061904 as PDF
  7. ↑ a b JP Vigneron, M Rassart, P Simonis JF. Colomer, A. Bay: "Possible uses of the layered structure found in the scales of Hoplia coerulea (Coleoptera)" Proc. of SPIE Vol. 7401 74010B-8 doi : 10.1117 / 12.825465 as PDF
  8. ↑ M Rassart, P Simonis, A Bay, O Deparis: “Scale coloration change following water absorption in the beetle Hoplia coerulea (Coleoptera)” PHYSICAL REVIEW E 80, 031910 2009 doi : 10.1103 / PhysRevE.80.031910 as PDF
  9. ^ A b Luc Auber: "Atlas des Coléoptères de France" Vol. 1, 2nd edition Editions N.Boubée & Cie Paris 1955
  10. ↑ a b c d Estefanía Micó, Eduardo Galante: " Hoplia coerulea (Drury 1773)" Categoría IUCN para España: VU A4ac as PDF
  11. ^ Zoo, scrolling text
  12. ↑ Heinz Freude , Karl Wilhelm Harde , Gustav Adolf Lohse (ed.): Die Käfer Mitteleuropas . tape 8 . Teredilia Heteromera Lamellicornia . Elsevier, Spektrum, Akademischer Verlag, Munich 1969, ISBN 3-8274-0682-X .

Web links

Commons : Hoplia coerulea  - album with pictures, videos and audio files