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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Beetles (Coleoptera) » Polyphaga » Series Elateriformia » Scirtoidea » Marsh Beetles (Scirtidae)

Family Scirtidae - Marsh Beetles

Classification · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Life Cycle · Remarks · Print References · Works Cited
LRB - Contacyphon Cyphon americanus Pic - Contacyphon americanus Beetle - Contacyphon pusillus Beetle - Contacyphon pubescens - female Texas SE Gulf Coast - Ora troberti - Ora troberti Little beetle - Contacyphon beetle - Contacyphon tiny beetle - Herthania obscura
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Coleoptera (Beetles)
Suborder Polyphaga
No Taxon (Series Elateriformia)
Superfamily Scirtoidea
Family Scirtidae (Marsh Beetles)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Elodiidae Shuckard 1839 · Helodidae Agassiz 1846 · Cyphonidae Stephens 1829
Explanation of Names
Scirtidae Fleming 1821
Numbers
>60 spp. in 13 genera in our area + numerous undescribed species(1); ~800 spp. in 35 genera worldwide(2)
Size
1.5‒12 mm(3)
Identification
The multisegmented larval antennae separate this group from all other holometabolous insects(3)
images of 12 eastern spp. in (4)
Range
worldwide; most diverse in temperate regions(3); in our area, more diverse in the east(1)
Habitat
Larvae in stagnant and flowing water (mostly rich in decomposing plant material); adults on vegetation, in rotting plant material on shorelines, etc.; may be abundant in light traps run near water bodies(5)
Life Cycle
Larvae may go through as many as 11 instars(5)
Remarks
One of the most poorly known of the subaquatic beetle families; all the genera are in great need of revision. ‒J.H. Epler, 11.iv.2009
Print References
(6)
Works Cited
1.Catalog of the Scirtidae of America north of Mexico (Coleoptera: Scirtoidea), with taxonomic and distributional notes
Gimmel M.L., Epler J.H. 2024. Col. Bull. 78: 319–334.
2.Order Coleoptera Linnaeus, 1758. In: Zhang Z.-Q. (ed.) Animal biodiversity: An outline of higher-level classification...
Ślipiński S.A., Leschen R.A.B., Lawrence J.F. 2011. Zootaxa 3148: 203–208.
3.American Beetles, Volume II: Polyphaga: Scarabaeoidea through Curculionoidea
Arnett, R.H., Jr., M. C. Thomas, P. E. Skelley and J. H. Frank. (eds.). 2002. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton, FL.
4.Scirtids of Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Coleoptera: Scirtidae), by M. Gimmel, C. Carlton, & A.J. Mayor
5.The Water Beetles of Florida
Epler J.H. 2010. Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Tallahassee. 414 pp.
6.A revision of the family Helodidae (Coleoptera) for America north of Mexico.
Tetrault, R.C. 1967. Ph.D. thesis, University of Wisconsin. 160 pp.
Contributed by tom murray on 11 May, 2005 - 7:46pm
Additional contributions by Phillip Harpootlian, McClarinJ, Bbarnd, Mike Quinn, Tim Moyer, v belov
Last updated 8 September, 2024 - 7:25pm

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