Species Alaus myops - Blind Click Beetle

Small-eyed Click Beetle(1), Blind Elater(2)

Alaus myops (Fabricius 1801)

24-38 mm(2); 20-45 mm(1)

Similar to A. oculatus but smaller, narrower, and the eyespots on the pronotum much smaller*. More mottled, less glossy; elytral striae finer. Flies earlier in year (spring).

* Eyespot length in myops is approximately equal to the distance between eyespot and foreward edge of pronotum and much less (approaching 1/2 the length) of the distance from eyespot to rear edge of pronotum. In most oculatus, the eyespot length is much longer than distance to forward pronotum edge, sometimes (but not always) nearly equalling the distance to rear pronotal edge.

PQ-FL to SD-TX(3)(4), most common in se. US (BG data)

Pine and mixed pine/deciduous forests(5)

Spring (Apr-Jun), apparently about earlier than the related A. oculatus, which flies in mid-summer (P. Coin, pers. observation in NC)

Adults probably feed little, but may visit flowers, "weeps".

Larvae prey on beetle larvae in pines(6)