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Genus Chlaenius - Vivid Metallic Ground Beetles

Representative Images

Ground Beetle - Chlaenius sericeus Chlaenius, perhaps? - Chlaenius tricolor Ground beetle - Chlaenius lithophilus 160319C07 - Chlaenius vafer Chlaenius glaucus LeConte - Chlaenius glaucus Chlaenius pennsylvanicus blanditus Casey 1920 - Chlaenius pennsylvanicus - female Chlaenius tricolor I no longer have a key to these… - Chlaenius erythropus

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Coleoptera (Beetles)
Suborder Adephaga
Family Carabidae (Ground Beetles)
Subfamily Harpalinae
Supertribe Pterostichitae
Tribe Chlaeniini
Genus Chlaenius (Vivid Metallic Ground Beetles)

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

Different subgeneric arrangements exist; the classification used here follows(1)

Explanation of Names

Chlaenius Bonelli 1810
Greek chlaen 'cloak' (refers to the dorsal pubescence)

Numbers

51 spp. in 10 subgenera in our area(1), >1,070 spp. in 64 subgenera total(2)

Size

8-23 mm

Identification

pronotum punctate; dorsum pubescent, often with vivid metallic coloration
key to NA species in (3)
key to 18 se. spp. in (4)
visual guide to species in the Chicago area:

Range

worldwide and across much of NA

Habitat

Usually moist areas

Life Cycle

Some species lay eggs in mud cells placed on the undersides of leaves or twigs. Most have one generation per year, with adults overwintering to breed in spring. [source?]

Remarks

smell foul when disturbed

Works Cited

1.Catalogue of Geadephaga (Coleoptera, Adephaga) of America, north of Mexico
Bousquet Y. 2012. ZooKeys 245: 1–1722.
2.Catalogue of Life
3.A revision of the genus Chlaenius Bonelli (Coleoptera, Carabidae) in North America.
Bell, RT. 1960. Miscellaneous Publications of the Entomological Society of America 1: 97-166.
4.Ground Beetles and Wrinkled Bark Beetles of South Carolina
Janet Ciegler. 2000. Clemson University.
Contributed by Cotinis on 18 October, 2004 - 6:34pm
Additional contributions by john and jane balaban, Bbarnd, Ted Kropiewnicki, ceiseman, v belov
Last updated 20 May, 2025 - 2:16pm

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