Family Byturidae - Fruitworm Beetles

Classification · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Food · Remarks · Works Cited

Raspberry Fruitworm Beetle - Byturus unicolor - male - female

Beetle - Byturus unicolor - male - female

Raspberry Fruitworm beetle - Byturus unicolor? - Byturus unicolor

Xerasia grisescens? - Xerasia grisescens

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Coleoptera (Beetles)

Suborder Polyphaga

No Taxon (Series Cucujiformia)

Superfamily Cleroidea

Family Byturidae (Fruitworm Beetles)

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

until recently treated in Cucujoidea

Explanation of Names

Byturidae Gistel 1848

Numbers

2 spp. in 2 genera in our area(1), 24 spp. in 7 genera total(2)

Size

2.5-5.5 mm

Identification

Fine, dense vestiture. Dorsum gently convex. Eleven antennomeres, last three forming club. Pronotum wide as elytra at back, narrowing toward head, which is narrower than pronotum.

Range

holarctic & Oriental(3); in our area, Byturus unicolor e. NA (NF-NT-AK to GA-TX), Xerasia grisescens w. US(1)(4)

Food

Adults feed at a variety of flowers. Larvae often in native fruits, or in oak galls in the case of Xerasia grisescens.

Remarks

key to North American species (5)

Works Cited

1.	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.

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.	Coleoptera, Beetles; Morphology and Systematics vol. 2 Richard A.B. Leschen, Rolf G. Beutel and John F. Lawrence. 2010. De Gruyter.

4.	Checklist of beetles (Coleoptera) of Canada and Alaska. Second edition Bousquet Y., Bouchard P., Davies A.E., Sikes D.S. 2013. ZooKeys 360: 1–402.

5.	A revision of the family Byturidae (Coleoptera) for North America Charles A. Springer and Michael A. Goodrich. 1983. The Coleopterists Bulletin, Vol. 37, No. 2, pp. 183-192.

Contributed by Jim McClarin on 19 November, 2005 - 6:21pm
Additional contributions by Phillip Harpootlian, Mike Quinn, v belov, Edward Ruden
Last updated 2 January, 2022 - 9:18pm

Disclaimer: Dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service. We strive to provide accurate information, but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world. If you need expert professional advice, contact your local extension office.

Contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content.
Click the contributor's name for licensing and usage information.
Everything else copyright © 2003-2025 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by:

Printer Friendly Version