Vierfleck-Ahlenläufer

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Vierfleck-Ahlenläufer
Vierfleck-Ahlenläufer

Vierfleck-Ahlenläufer

Systematics
Class : Insects (Insecta)
Order : Beetle (Coleoptera)
Family : Ground beetle (Carabidae)
Subfamily : Trechinae
Genre : Bembidion
Type : Vierfleck-Ahlenläufer
Scientific name
Bembidion quadrimaculatum
( Linnaeus , 1761)
Fig. 1: Front view
Fig. 2: underside
Fig. 3: Base of the pronotum

The four-spot Ahlenläufer ( Bembidion quadrimaculatum ) is a ground beetle from the subfamily Trechinae .

The generic name Bembidion is from Altgr. βέμβιξ bémbix (name of a buzzing insect) and ἰδέα idéa "appearance" derived. The species name quadrimaculatum ( Latin ) means "four spots" and refers to the four spots on the wing covers . However, there are several similar species that also have four points on the elytra, on the other hand, the four points of the four-spot awl runner do not always have to be formed.

Characteristics of the beetle

The beetle is only 2.8 to 3.5 millimeters in size. The first four links of the thread-like eleven-link antennae are yellow, as are the legs and jaw buttons . The head and pronotum are black with a metallic sheen, the wing covers are usually dark brown.

The mouthparts point forward, the end links of the jaw probes sit like a pin in the club-shaped thickened penultimate link. (Fig. 1). This feature distinguishes all species of the Bembidiini tribe , which is why they were previously listed as the subfamily Bembiidae. The forehead is furrowed lengthways next to the eye rims, otherwise smooth. The longitudinal furrows include two pore points above each eye , in which the two bristles above the eye (supraorbital teal) arise.

The heart-shaped pronotum is narrowed straight to slightly concave towards the base, the rear corners are drawn outward like teeth and each have a bristle, the base itself is bulging (Fig. 3). The pronotum is head width at the head.

The dark, bare wing covers have four yellowish spots, one larger behind the shoulder and one smaller round one in the back half of the wing cover. The dotted stripes of the elytra become weaker towards the back and disappear. The distance between the individual points is greater than the point diameter. At the rear the wings end together rounded.

biology

The beetle occurs on fine sand and loamy soil and, in contrast to the majority of the awkward, is not moisture-loving, but prefers dry to slightly damp soils. It is a common beetle in heaths and gravel pits, on dunes and on the edges of forests. Hibernation occurs as a beetle or as a larva, the beetle produces two generations per year. The beetle lives predatory on small arthropods.

distribution

The species is distributed throughout Europe as the subspecies B. quadrimaculatum quadrimaculatum . To the east, the range extends across Asia to North America, where the species occurs as a subspecies B. quadrimaculatum oppositum . To the north it reaches the Arctic Circle.

literature

  • Heinz Joy, Karl Wilhelm Harde, Gustav Adolf Lohse: The beetles of Central Europe . tape 2 . Adephaga 1. Elsevier, Spektrum, Akad. Verl., Munich 1976, ISBN 3-87263-025-3 .
  • Ekkehard Wachmann , Ralph Platen, Dieter Barndt: Ground beetles - observation, way of life . 1st edition. Naturbuch-Verlag, Augsburg 1995, ISBN 3-89440-125-7 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Bembidion quadrimaculatum in Fauna Europaea. Retrieved March 12, 2011
  2. ↑ Sigmund Schenkling: Explanation of the scientific beetle names.
  3. ↑ JR Jarrett and G. G E. Scudder Carabidae (Coleoptera) New to British Columbia, with One Species New to Canada The Coleopterists Bulletin 55 (3): 378-384. 2001 doi : 10.1649 / 0010-065X (2001) 055 [0378: CCNTBC] 2.0.CO; 2

Web links

Commons : Vierfleck-Ahlenläufer  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files