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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Beetles (Coleoptera) » Water, Rove, Scarab, Longhorn, Leaf and Snout Beetles (Polyphaga) » Fungus, Bark, Darkling and Blister Beetles (Tenebrionoidea) » Blister Beetles (Meloidae) » Nemognathinae » Nemognatha

Genus Nemognatha

Classification · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Range · Season · Food · Life Cycle · Remarks · Print References · Internet References · Works Cited

Nemognatha sp.? - Nemognatha scutellaris

Fungus gnat cleaning a blister beetle - Nemognatha

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Coleoptera (Beetles)

Suborder Polyphaga (Water, Rove, Scarab, Longhorn, Leaf and Snout Beetles)

Superfamily Tenebrionoidea (Fungus, Bark, Darkling and Blister Beetles)

Family Meloidae (Blister Beetles)

Subfamily Nemognathinae

Genus Nemognatha

Explanation of Names

Author of genus Illiger, 1807.

Numbers

Neartica lists 28 North American species.

Size

5.5-15 mm

Range

Mostly Western U.S. (1)

Season

Late spring, summer.

Food

Adults: nectar and pollen of various flowers (1), especially Asteraceae (2).

Life Cycle

Females lay eggs on flowers, larva attach themsleves to bees when they visit flowers and are then carried to bee nests where they eat bee eggs and stored food. (1)

Remarks

Possess very long mouthparts (maxillae), that function like a sucking tube for taking up nectar. (3)

Print References

"Peterson's Field Guide to Beetles" p. 274, fig. 118.(1)

Salsbury--N. lurida, p. 218 (4)

Arnett and Jacques--N. lurida, # 153 (5)

Brimley, p. 162, lists for North Carolina: N. bicolor (Sandhills, April-May), N. piezata (=piazata, widespread June-October), N. cribraria (Raleigh, August-October), N. nemorensis (eastern part of state, May-June), N. vittigera (Raleigh, August). (6)

Internet References

The Insects of Cedar Creek has images of N. vittigera and some info.

Oklahoma Biological Survey has an image of N. bicolor.

North Carolina State University Entomology--lists for that state, with number pinned: cribraria (5), nemorensis (23), piazata (68), punctulata (4)

Beetles of Florida lists: nemorensis, piazata, punctulata.

Arizona collection has 8 spp. listed from that state.

Coleoptera of Oklahoma lists 7 species in that genus, and several other genera in tribe Nemognathini, which is the only tribe listed in subfamily Nemognathinae.

Works Cited

1.	Peterson Field Guides: Beetles By Richard E. White

2.	Field Guide to Beetles of California By Arthur V. Evans and James N. Hogue

3.	The Natural History of Pollination By Michael Proctor, Peter Yeo, and Andrew Lack

4.	Insects in Kansas By Glenn A. Salsbury and Stephan C. White

5.	Simon & Schuster's Guide to Insects By Dr. Ross H. Arnett, Dr. Richard L. Jacques

6.	Insects of North Carolina By C.S. Brimley

Contributed by Tony DiTerlizzi on 22 January, 2005 - 6:44pm
Additional contributions by cotinis, Hartmut Wisch
Last updated 14 December, 2006 - 1:26pm

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