| Darkling Beetle ( Coelocnemis sp. ) | |
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| IDENTIFICATION | |
| Identification: | Coelocnemis sp. (Mannerheim, 1843) |
| Common Name: | Darkling Beetle |
| Life Stage: | A |
| PHYLOGENY | |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Superorder: | Holometabola |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Suborder: | Polyphaga |
| Family: | Tenebrionidae |
| Subfamily: | Stenochiinae |
| Tribe: | Cnodalonini |
| Genus: | Coelocnemis |
| Taxon Code: | COL00461 |
LOCATION DETAILS | |
| Location | |
| Curry Creek, Curry Creek, Clayton | |
| County: | Contra Costa County |
| ECI Site#: | CAEB380000 |
| Park/Forest: | Morgan Territory |
RECOGNITION | |
| Coelocnemis, like Eleodes, stand on their heads and emit defensive secretions from the tip of their abdomen, but are readily distinguished from Eleodes by having two rows of fine, golden brown hairs on the lower half of the inside margin of the hind tibiae. | |
| Body Length | |
| Males: ~16 mm. Females: ~20 mm. | |
| Similar Taxa | |
| Eleodes sp. also are large, black beetles in arid habitats. Both have similar defensive behaviors. | |
BIOLOGY | |
| Food | |
| Vegetative matter. | |
| Habitat | |
| May be seen walking in open ground and is common beneath ground debris in woodlands and meadows. | |
| Active Period | |
| Adults are active year round. | |
HABITAT | |
| May be seen walking in open ground and is common beneath ground debris in woodlands and meadows. | |
CREDITS | |
| Photographer Eddie Dunbar | |
REFERENCES | |
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