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Photo#38580
Asbolus verrucosus

Asbolus verrucosus
Kelso Dunes, Mojave National Preserve, San Bernardino County, California, USA
May 17, 2003
Who can help? - I'm not sure whether this is a Darkling (Tenebrionidae), or an Ironclad Beetle (Zopheridae)
The photos were taken around sunset at the base of the dunes.

Images of this individual: tag all
Asbolus verrucosus Asbolus verrucosus

Moved

wrong genus
This is Asbolus verrucosa, not Cryptoglossa. The tribe, however, is Cryptoglossini

 
Asbolus verrucosa
it is! Thanks for noticing it. I was thinking about this a few days ago, upon receiving my copy of the new field guide by Evans & Hogue ((1)), but didn't have time to check what name I had on bugguide.

Tenebrionidae.
This is a tenebrionid. The common name is "death-feigning beetle," or "ironclad beetle." The latter name is more properly applied to Zopheridae, hence the confusion. The scientific name of this specimen is Cryptoglossa verrucosa (though it might be a closely related species). Nice images of cool critters often kept in captivity.

 
Tenebrionidae
Thanks so much for checking the ID of this beetle. You've shown remarkable closeness with your identifications, so for now I'll go with Cryptoglossa verrucosa.
Also, thanks for setting up a species page for this.

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