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Genus Galerita - False Bombardier Beetles

False Bombardier Beetle - Galerita bicolor Galerita beetle larva - Galerita Galerita janus Brachinus? - Galerita lecontei Beetle - Galerita bicolor very active, black with orange head - Galerita False Bombardier Beetle - Galerita bicolor - Galerita bicolor Galerita lecontei? - Galerita lecontei
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Coleoptera (Beetles)
Suborder Adephaga
Family Carabidae (Ground Beetles)
Subfamily Harpalinae
Supertribe Harpalitae
Tribe Galeritini
Genus Galerita (False Bombardier Beetles)
Other Common Names
Slender Ground Beetles
Explanation of Names
Galerita Fabricius 1801
Latin galeritus 'wearing fur hat'
Numbers
8 spp. in our area (all but G. aequinoctialis in the subg. Progaleritina), ~90 total(1)
Size
17-25 mm
Identification
Compare head shapes of G. bicolor vs. G. janus:

keys to spp. in(2)(3)
Range
worldwide except the Australian region, but not far north (and only in the Pacific part of the Palearctic); in NA, transcontinental in the south and along the Mississippi Basin north to MB in the west and MA in the east; G. bicolor and G. janus are widespread eastern species; G. lecontei across so. US (the only sp. ranging into CA) and Mexico(1)
Habitat
Open woodlands, under stones, leaves. Come to lights, sometimes wander into houses.
Season
Much of year in south. In SC, G. bicolor Feb-Dec, G. janus Apr-Dec, G. lecontei Apr-Aug + Nov
Life Cycle
Eggs are deposited in a purse-shaped mud cell on the underside of smooth leaves; this behavior + the distinctive larva suggest an unusual way of life(1)
Caution: These beetles have chemical defenses (see Rossini et al. 1997)
Print References
King J.L. (1919) Notes on the biology of the carabid genera Brachynus, Galerita and Chlaenius. Ann. Ent. Soc. Am. 12: 382-390.
Works Cited
1.American Beetles, Volume I: Archostemata, Myxophaga, Adephaga, Polyphaga: Staphyliniformia
Arnett, R.H., Jr., and M. C. Thomas. (eds.). 2000. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton, FL.
2.A monographic revision of the American Galeritini (Coleoptera: Carabidae)
Reichardt H. 1967. Arquivos de Zoologia 15(1-2): 1-176.
3.Synopsis of the species of subgenus Progaleritina Jeannel, including reconstructed phylogeny and geographical history...
Ball G.E., Nimmo A.P. 1983. Trans. Am. Ent. Soc. 109: 295-356.