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National Moth Week was July 19-27, and the Summer 2025 gathering in Louisiana, July 19-27

Photos of insects and people from the 2024 BugGuide gathering in Idaho July 24-27

Moth submissions from National Moth Week 2024

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Family Nitidulidae - Sap-feeding Beetles

Representative Images

Epuraea umbrosa Horn - Epuraea umbrosa Beetle - Colopterus truncatus Sap-Feeding Beetle - Fabogethes nigrescens Glischrochilus confluentus Rove 1 - Caplothorax lugubris Strawberry Sap Beetle - Stelidota geminata Phenolia grossa Cryptarcha - Cryptarcha strigatula

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Coleoptera (Beetles)
Suborder Polyphaga
No Taxon (Series Cucujiformia)
Superfamily Cucujoidea
No Taxon (Nitidulid series)
Family Nitidulidae (Sap-feeding Beetles)

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

a classification of world genera here (Kireitschuk 2012); Cybocephalidae and Prometopinae restored(1)

Explanation of Names

Nitidulidae Latreille 1802

Numbers

~170 spp. in 30 genera in our area(2), ~4500 spp. in 350 genera worldwide(3); 73 spp. in WI(4); 70 in IN(5); 33 in a part of VA(6)
Overview of our fauna
Family NITIDULIDAE
Subfamily CRYPTARCHINAE
Tribe Cryptarchini Cryptarcha · Glischrochilus (subgg. Librodor · Glischrochilus) · Pityophagus
Subfamily PROMETOPINAE Prometopia
Subfamily AMPHICROSSINAE Amphicrossus
Subfamily CARPOPHILINAE Carpophilus (subgg. Carpophilus · Megacarpolus · Semocarpolus · Ecnomorphus· Myothorax · *Plapennipolus) · Caplothorax · Nitops (subgg. Nitops · Urocarpolus) · Urophorus
Subfamily EPURAEINAE
Tribe Epuraeini Epuraea (subgg. Aphenolia · Haptoncus · Epuraea · Epuraeanella · Orthopeplus · incertae sedis)
Subfamily MELIGETHINAE Acanthogethes · Afrogethes · Brassicogethes · Fabogethes · Genistogethes · Meligethes
Subfamily CILLAEINAE Brachypeplus · Colopterus · Conotelus
Subfamily NITIDULINAE
Tribe Cychramini Cychramus
Tribe Nitidulini Pocadius · Thalycra • Nitidula-complex: Nitidula · Omosita • Soronia-complex: Amphotis · Lobiopa · Soronia • Phenolia-complex: Phenolia · Stelidota • Aethina-complex: Aethina
Tribe Cyllodini Camptodes · Cyllodes · Pallodes · Psilopyga

Size

0.9‒15 mm

Identification

photo gallery in (7)

Range

worldwide and across NA

Food

fungi, plant matter, sap, decaying fruit; many associated with flowers, carrion (Nitidula, Omosita...), bee nests (Aethina tumida, E. aestiva), ant nests (e.g. Amphotis); some may damage stored products (some Carpophilinae). Larvae of some nit genera prey on bark beetle larvae

Internet References

Fact sheets: Myers (2004)(8) • Lyon & Williams (1997)(9)

Works Cited

1.Molecular phylogeny of Nitidulidae: assessment of subfamilial and tribal classification...
Cline A.R., Smith T.R., Miller K., Moulton M., Whiting M., Audisio P. 2014. Systematic Entomology 39: 758–772.
2.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.
3.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.
4.An annotated checklist of Wisconsin sap and short-winged flower beetles (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae, Kateretidae)
Price M.B., Young D.K. 2006. Insecta Mundi 20: 69‒84.
5.A checklist of the sap beetle (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae) fauna of Indiana, with notes on effective trapping methods
G.S. Powell. 2015. Insecta Mundi 2015 (0424): June 5, 2015.
6.The sap-feeding beetles (Col: Nitidulidae) of the George Washington Memorial Parkway, Virginia, and the District of Columbia
Chandler D.S. Steury B.W. 2023. Banisteria 57: 67–74.
7.Collison C., MacGown J. (2010) Nitidulidae in the Mississippi Entomological Museum
8.University of Florida: Featured Creatures
9.Ohio State University Extension fact sheets
Contributed by Tony DiTerlizzi on 2 November, 2004 - 10:05pm
Additional contributions by cotinis, Phillip Harpootlian, Jeff Gruber, Bbarnd, Chuck Entz, Tim Moyer, v belov, Marci Hess
Last updated 29 April, 2025 - 11:56am

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