Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
Photo#22361
Huge rove beetle - Platydracus maculosus

Huge rove beetle - Platydracus maculosus
Gatineau, Quebec, Canada
June 28, 2005
Size: about 2.4 cm
I found this guy stuck in my pool, I imagine that he flew in and got stuck. By far, he's the largest rove beetle I've ever seen. He's amazingly fast, so I chilled him and put him in my flatbed scanner.

Platydracus maculosus.
This is a specimen of Platydracus maculosus (formerly Staphylinus maculosus, and many older references still use that name). Only the devil's coach horse, an introduced rove beetle, is larger.

Another one...
I just recovered another large rove beetle from my pool. It's about the same size as this one, but it's head, thorax, and elytra are brownish with black spots. It also has yellow markings in a few places and huge jaws. I'll post a picture as soon as I can.