Genus Palaeoxenus

Classification · Other Common Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Season · Food · Life Cycle · Remarks · Print References

Dohrn's Elegant Eucnemid Beetle - Palaeoxenus dohrnii

Palaeoxenus dorhnii - Palaeoxenus dohrnii

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Coleoptera (Beetles)

Suborder Polyphaga

No Taxon (Series Elateriformia)

Superfamily Elateroidea

Family Eucnemidae (False Click Beetles)

Genus Palaeoxenus

Other Common Names

Dohrn's Elegant Eucnemid Beetle

Numbers

One extant species N. of Mexico

Size

13-19 mm long

Identification

Blood red and black colorations is the best diagnostic feature.

Range

S. California

Habitat

Largely found in a mixed coniferous forest system in the mountains.

Season

late May through June.

Food

Larvae have been taken in incense cedar. Adults were found beneath the bark of sugar pines and incense cedar.

Life Cycle

The highly unusual larvae were found boring in the bark near the base of the stump, close to the soil.

Remarks

A very interesting paper was published in the April edition of Cladistics. Jyrki Muona and a team of Chinese Paleontologists described a first compression fossil for a eucnemid larva. This larva is none other than Palaeoxenus sinensis, exposing the extant Dohrn's elegant eucnemid beetle (Palaeoxenus dohrnii) to be the family's only living fossil. The existence of the group dates back to the Cretaceous period, roughly 123 million years ago. The article is open access through the journal's website: (Cladistics).

Print References

Boving, A.G. & Graighead, F.C. 1930. An illustrated Synopsis of the Principle Larval Forms of Coleoptera. Entomological Americana (new series) 11: 1-351. --(ventral aspect of larva illustrated, no formal description made)

Chang Huali, Jyrki Muona, et al. 2016. Chinese Cretaceous larva exposes a southern Californian living fossil (Insecta, Coleoptera, Eucnemidae). Cladistics 32: 211-214. -- (Chinese larval description)

Fenyes, A. 1903. Paleoxenus (Cryptosoma) dohrnii Horn. Entomological News 11: 220. -- (biological observations)

Horn, G.H. 1878. Contribution to the Coleopterology of the United States II. Transactions to the American Entomological Society 7: 51-60. -- (species description)

Horn, G.H. 1882. Notes on some little known genera and species of Coleoptera. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 10(1): 113- . -- (illustration of adult)

Horn, G.H. 1891. New Species and Miscellaneus Notes. Transactions of the American Entomological Society 18: 32-48. -- (description of Palaeoxenus)

Muona, J. 2000. A revision of the Nearctic Eucnemidae. Acta Zoologica Fennica 212: 1-106.

Contributed by Phillip Harpootlian on 21 May, 2007 - 5:08pm
Additional contributions by Robert Otto
Last updated 11 May, 2016 - 3:46pm

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