Sponge ball beetle

Sponge ball beetle
Anisotoma humeralis
Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta) Order : Beetle (Coleoptera) Subordination : Polyphaga Superfamily : Staphylinoidea Family : Leiodidae Subfamily : Sponge ball beetle
Scientific name
Leiodinae
Fleming , 1821

The sponge ball beetles (Leiodinae) are a subfamily of the beetle family Leiodidae . The types of the subfamily are mushroom eaters on fruiting bodies and mycelia .

features

Usually these oval or rounded beetles reach a size of 2–3 mm, but some species can grow up to 7 mm. The antennae are eleven-limbed and provided with a three- to five- limb club . The wing covers are depending on the type glossy, matte, dotted or have a mesh pattern. The number of foot members is different in the individual genera (from 5-5-5 to 3-3-3). The number of limbs of the feet can also be different in males and females and, as a sex dimorphism, represent a differentiation option.

distribution

The sponge ball beetles are common on all continents except Antarctica . There are around 500 species, of which around 85 in Central Europe and over 50 in the British Isles.

Way of life

The beetles of the Leiodini tribe live on underground mushrooms and have grave legs, while the Agathidiini occur above ground on slime molds , but also on mushrooms such as hat mushrooms and various tree fungi . You have walking legs. Most species of the genus Agathidium have the ability to curl up spherically in case of danger. Many of the species living in the ground or in the litter become active at dusk and can then be found in forest meadows or on banks .

Tribe

The subfamily Leiodinae is divided into several tribes. In older systematic works in which the Leiodinae are treated as a separate family, these tribes are viewed as subfamilies.

• Agathidiini
• Estadiini
• Leiodini
• Pseudoliodini
• Scotocryptini
• Sogdini

useful information

Species of this subfamily are named after three former US politicians:

• George W. Bush : Agathidium bushi
• Richard Cheney : Agathidium cheneyi
• Donald Rumsfeld : Agathidium rumsfeldi

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Sponge Ball Beetle at www.kerbtier.de

literature

• Erwin Stresemann and Bernhard Klausnitzer : Stresemann - excursion fauna of Germany, volume 2: Invertebrates: insects. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, 11th edition, 2011, p. 380, ISBN 3-8274-2451-8

Web links

Commons : Leiodinae  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Original communication from Cornell University regarding the naming of some Agathidium species after American politicians