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Species Melanotus communis-complex - Melanotus communis Complex

Click Beetle - Melanotus communis-complex Click Beetle - Melanotus communis-complex Click Beetle - Melanotus communis-complex Reddish Click Beetle - Melanotus communis-complex Beetle - Melanotus communis-complex Brown Click Beetle - Melanotus communis-complex Tan-haired click beetle - Melanotus communis-complex Melanotus? - Melanotus communis-complex
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 Elateridae (Click Beetles)
Subfamily Elaterinae
Tribe Melanotini
Genus Melanotus
Species communis-complex (Melanotus communis Complex)
Range
Most species in this complex are variably distributed in eastern North America
Habitat
Species in this complex are readily attracted to lights and collected in Lindgren funnel traps. Adults may be collected under bark and in rotting pine and hardwoods.
Remarks
members of this complex usually cannot be reliably identified without examination of male genitalia, and include the following species(1):
Melanotus communis (Gyllenhal, 1817)
Melanotus similis (Kirby, 1837)
Melanotus indistinctus Quate, 1967
Melanotus dietrichi Quate, 1967
Melanotus miscellus Quate, 1967
Melanotus verberans (LeConte, 1853)
Melanotus emissus (LeConte, 1853)
Some other species are similar but can often be ruled out based on external characters:
Melanotus decumanus (Erichson, 1842)
Melanotus castanipes (Paykull, 1800)
Melanotus spadix (Erichson, 1842)
Works Cited
1.Revision of click beetles of genus Melanotus in America north of Mexico (Coleoptera: Elateridae).
Quate, L.W., and S.E. Thompson. 1967. Proceedings of the U.S. National Museum, 121(3568): 1-83.