Beetles: Order Coleoptera
There are over 350,000 different known beetle species worldwide and new species are being discovered all the time. Beetles make up 40% of all insects and there are eight times as many beetle species as there are fish, amphibian, reptile, bird and mammal species put together. Beetles are extremely diverse and are one of the most successful groups of animals in the world.
The huge number of beetle species demonstrates their ability to live in almost any environment. Their front wings (called elytra) are hard sheaths that protect the beetles' hind wings and cover the breathing pores. This enables beetles to control their body temperature and retain water. Beetles also have diverse mouthparts, and they eat anything from hardwood to the ooze from rotting fungi.
Beetle facts:
- Over one-quarter of all known species of animals are beetles.
- There are over 350,000 different known beetle species worldwide and new species are being discovered all the time.
- Some1,500 species may occur in the Sydney region.
- Of the 30,000 species that may occur in Australia, only 20,000 are scientifically described.
- Beetles eat other insects, fruit, fungi, dead animal and plant material, and wood.
- Many species live in the nests of other animals.
Australian Beetles
Of the 30,000 species that may occur in Australia, only 20,000 are scientifically described. Some1500 species may occur in the Sydney region.
Families with large numbers of species include:
- Curculionidae (weevils): the largest family (6000 species)
- Scarabaeidae (scarabs, dung beetles, chafers): 3000 species
- Chrysomelidae (leaf beetles): 3000 species
- Carabidae (ground beetles): 2500 species
- Staphylinidae (rove beetles): 1600 species
- Tenebrionidae (darkling beetles): 1500 species
- Cerambycidae (longicorn beetles): 1200 species
- Buprestidae (jewel beetles): 1200 species
Beetle Habitat
Beetles can be found in almost all available habitats, including in water.
Terrestrial beetles are found:
- In soil and under rocks
- On or in flowers, leaves, fruits and seeds
- In leaf litter
- Under tree bark
- In rotting wood
- On animal carcasses
- In foodstuffs such as grains
- In nests of other animals
Aquatic beetles can be found in a range of watery habitats from temporary puddles to mountain streams, lakes and even brackish or muddy habitats. Some species may even be found in the intertidal zone by the sea.
Beetle Anatomy
Beetles have a wide variety of body shapes, sizes and colours, however they are usually distinguished from other insects by having:
- 2 pairs of wings, with the first pair hardened into elytra (protective wing cases without veins), the second pair membranous and used for flying
Beetles are the only insects that have true elytra. This has enabled beetles to live in many habitats that would damage the wings of less well-protected insects, such as leaf litter, logs and soil. Some beetle species do not have hind wings and their elytra may be fused together. Some beetles have highly reduced elytra, with the hind wings folded up and others have no wings at all.
Beetles have legs that are normally adapted for walking or running, increasing in size from front to rear. However in some families one or more pairs may be modified for:
- Burrowing in soil (eg Scarabaeidae, some Tenebrionidae)
- Tunnelling in wood (eg some Curculionidae)
- Swimming (eg Dytiscidae)
- Jumping (eg some Chrysomelidae)
Beetle Life Cycle
Beetles are holometabolous. This means that their larvae pupate before emerging as adult insects. Beetle larvae are often referred to as grubs.
Beetle grubs are diverse in their shapes and habits. Most beetle grubs live in concealed habitats, such as underground or inside trees. There are many aquatic species, and a few which resemble caterpillars and feed openly on leaves. Many retain segmented legs, although weevil grubs nearly always lack legs. Most legless beetle grubs have robust chewing mouthparts and can be distinguished from similarly-shaped fly maggots, which often have modified mouth 'hooks'.
Feeding
Beetles, both adults and grubs, use their chewing mouthparts to eat other insects, fruit, nectar, leaves, fungi, dead animal and plant material, and/or wood. Some beetles form symbiotic relationships with other insects such as termites, ants or bees, living in their nests and either being tolerated or even actively protected and/or fed by their hosts.
Predation and defence
Many beetles produce chemical compounds that protect them against attack from bacteria, fungi and/or predators. Special glands produce these chemicals, which either render the whole beetle unpalatable to predators or are specifically released upon attack. Beetles with these defences are often brightly coloured as a warning to potential predators.
Another form of defence is the specialised detachable hair found on larvae in the Family Dermestidae. These hairs stick to predators such as ants and hinder them from attacking further.
Beetles as Pests
Some beetles can be household, garden and/or agricultural pests.
Household pests are either found eating foodstuffs such as grains and cereals, furnishings such as fabrics, carpet and animal products (eg hides) or wooden furniture. For example, cigarette and drugstore beetles infest foodstuffs, while hide and carpet beetles damage soft furnishings, and powderpost borers make holes in wooden furniture.
Beetles that can cause problems in gardens and/or in agriculture include: wood-borers such as longicorn beetle larvae (Cerambycidae) as well as beetles that may attack plant leaves, such as leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae), or roots, such as Christmas beetle (Scarabaeidae, genus Anoplognathus) and chafer grubs (Scarabaeidae, subfamily Melolonthinae).
For enquiries relating to these insects in the Australian Museum collection please contact the Collection Manager
Reference
CSIRO. 1991. The Insects of Australia. CSIRO Publishing.
Would you like to add a comment?
Sign up to add comments and find out more about the other benefits you can enjoy.
Tags
Author tags
Would you like to add a tag?
Sign up to add tags and find out more about the other benefits you can enjoy.
Beetle View full size
Andrew Howells
© Australian Museum
Support us
Your support will have a real impact.
Online Shop
Great gifts.
Australian Museum Members
Join today.
Australian Museum Business Services
Professional consulting.
Museum as a Venue
Unique spaces.
Media Resources
Contact Publicity.
57 comments
trevorandersen
10.11 PM, 12 November 2011
Hi, can anyone identify this beetle? I've been told it's some sort of weevil. I spotted it on a wall in North Queensland. Thanks!
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
8.07 AM, 07 July 2011
Hi Matt,
It is not a beetle, but a giant water bug in the genus Lethocerus (Hemiptera: Belostomatidae). The key characters for picking that it is a bug are the partially leathery forewings which have the outer half membranous with visible wing veins, and the sucking tubular mouthparts. Beetles have the forewings without any trace of wing veins, and have chewing mouthparts.
mattycjohnson
7.07 AM, 07 July 2011
hope this works
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
1.07 PM, 06 July 2011
Hi Matt,
It looks like your image did not upload - please try again.
mattycjohnson
12.07 PM, 06 July 2011
does anyone have an idea what this little critter is?
Dave Britton
8.07 AM, 05 July 2011
Dear Nuria,
It is a chafer beetle in the subfamily Melolonthinae (Family Scarabaeidae). What part of the world do you live in? It does not look like an Australian species.
nuriacardona
7.07 PM, 04 July 2011
I have found this beetle in my garden and I would like to ask if someone could please help me identify it.Thanks in advanced!
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
12.05 PM, 01 May 2011
Hi Chris, I have enabled comments for the Hemiptera page - please post your enquiry there and I will try and see if I can come up with a name for you.
ChrisRoss
7.04 PM, 19 April 2011
Dave, thanks for that, is there a similar page to this one for Hemiptera, where I could enquire about ID? I found one page for true bugs but it has no comments? Chris
Dave Britton
8.04 AM, 19 April 2011
Hi Chris,
You've lucked out unfortunately! Another bug on the beetle page ;-). It is a very nice photo though.
ChrisRoss
12.04 PM, 11 April 2011
Hi Dave, found this beetle (doesn't seem to a hemiptera, but I could be wrong) under a gymea lily leaf, it seemed relutant to move in spite of flexing the leaf over 90° to take this shot. Have tried a few avevues to ID to no avail. Appreciate it if you could have a look. This was at Helensburgh, south of the Royal NP.
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
9.04 PM, 08 April 2011
"Hi Sue,
Unfortunately yet another "not a beetle" on the beetle page! It is the female of the mountain katydid Acripeza reticulata (Order Orthoptera, Family Tettigoniidae).
www.brisbaneinsects.com/brisbane_grasshoppers/MountainKatydid.htm
SamEvans
8.04 PM, 08 April 2011
Hi Dave, I found this beetle in Newcastle several months ago during summer. Its abdomen is approx 30mm long, and what really struck me was the distinctive red and blue stripes underneath its elytra. A search in several books (and google) yielded no results, and i was wondering if you could help out? Cheers, Sam
Comment Attachment
mrdonald
12.03 PM, 16 March 2011
I was hoping someone at the museum might be able to identify these bugs for me. They were found at Whale Beach on a Norfolk Island Hibiscus amid the dessicating fruits.
Comment Attachment
Bren
9.03 AM, 04 March 2011
Hi, I'm currently doing an insect collection for school, and I need 10 different families of beetle. Can you suggest some relatively common beetles that I might find in Melbourne, and their habitats? Thanks :)
Dave Britton
9.02 AM, 16 February 2011
It is the fiddler beetle, one of the more common cetoniine chafers found in urban areas
australianmuseum.net.au/image/Fiddler-Beetle
Dave Britton
9.02 AM, 16 February 2011
Hi Chris,
It is not a beetle, but a bug. It will have tubular sucking mouthparts on the head. It is the metallic shield bug Scutiphora pedicellata (Scutelleridae).
ericos_bob
8.02 PM, 15 February 2011
Hi, Here's another beetle I haven't come across before. About 3cms in length. Found in adelaide hills. It has a bright green striped upper body and the under body is fluorescent yellow striped. Any ideas what it might be?
Comment Attachment
ccbroad
7.02 PM, 08 February 2011
and a clearer one of the top (sorry don't seem to be able to upload more than 1 photo at a time)
Comment Attachment
ccbroad
7.02 PM, 08 February 2011
here is another photo of the underneath
Comment Attachment
ccbroad
7.02 PM, 08 February 2011
hi- we are trying to identify this beetle we found in the garden- it is very bright and colourful. thanks
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
4.01 PM, 20 January 2011
Dear Paul,
Our resident cerambycid expert Roger de Keyzer has made the following comment in regards your post made on 11.01 PM, 10 January 2011.
ChrisRoss
10.01 PM, 17 January 2011
Hi Roger, thanks for the response, unfortunately I got carried away with a full face portrait and the only shot I got was a partial side view, working with that lens takes a lot of time and patience, this was shot at about 3x and took a bit of playing with flash position to get illumination right. Anyway hopefully the additional view will help?
Comment Attachment
longiman
3.01 PM, 17 January 2011
Dear Chris (posting ChrisRoss 10.12AM, 27 Dec 2010) Dave Britton has asked if I can respond to your enquiry. Very nice photograph. While I am fairly certain I know what species you have photographed I really need a picture of the whole beetle from the upper surface - dorsal or lateral view would be fine. Cheers Roger
Dave Britton
10.01 AM, 14 January 2011
Dear Sam (Meika, posted 2.01 PM, 01 January 2011), that is a paropsine leaf beetle (Family Chrysomelidae). Australia has a diverse fauna of these beetles. Both adults and larvae feed on leaves.
Dave Britton
10.01 AM, 14 January 2011
Dear John (Mock26, posted 5.12 AM, 31 December 2010), that is a nymph of a mole cricket (Order Orthoptera, Family Gryllotalpidae) I seem to be getting a few enquiries about mole crickets this summer, so it must have been a good year for these insects. See the Orthoptera fact sheet for more on mole crickets.
Paul_K
11.01 PM, 10 January 2011
Dr Britton, My son and I caught a Longicorn beetle in our drive way (Melbourne, VIC) and he wants to keep it. Can you please advise what type of wood it is likely to eat ? Does it also require a moisture source (say a cottne ball soaked in water) or will it derive its required moisture from the wood ? If you need a picture to assist please let me know and I'll organise it. Thank you in anticipation, Regards Paul
Meika
2.01 PM, 01 January 2011
Hey there. I found this little fellow on my window and wondered what it is? It can fly, is only small (around 2-3cm) and is slightly see-through at the edges. He also has very good gripping feet.
Comment Attachment
Mock26
5.12 AM, 31 December 2010
Mr. Britton, A friend of mine recently took this picture in her backyard but did not know what it is. Can you possibly identify it? Thank you very much. Take care and have a great day.... ciao, john.
Comment Attachment
ChrisRoss
10.12 AM, 27 December 2010
Hi, I've imaged a longicorn beetle at home, wondering is someone could venture an ID. Found at Helensburgh south of the Royal National Park. Regards, Chris
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
8.12 PM, 17 December 2010
That is a female shiny mole cricket Gryllotalpa nitidula (Gryllotalpidae). It belongs in the order Orthoptera, so please feel free to post her image up on the comments there.
australianmuseum.net.au/Grasshoppers-crickets-katydids-and-locusts-Order-Orthoptera
shamj
7.12 PM, 15 December 2010
hi, i saw this around the gap at watsons bay the other night - can anyone tell me what it is?
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
3.12 PM, 15 December 2010
These are nymphs of the cotton harlequin bug, so really belong on the Hemiptera/true bugs page web1.australianmuseum.net.au/Bugs-Order-Hemiptera/
Chaikhe
11.12 AM, 15 December 2010
Hi, is this another cotton harlequin? Found at Flinders University in South Australia. Both pictures are the same creature.
Comment Attachment
JS386
9.10 AM, 30 October 2010
In regards to my comment below! It appears to be this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halmus_chalybeus - Thanks anyway, Jasper :)
JS386
9.10 AM, 30 October 2010
Hi, I just found this beetle but I can't seem to identify it in any of my local insect books and I'm having trouble finding resources online. It was far more blue and shiny in person than it looks in the photos. It was very active but didn't open it's wings once during the 10 minutes that I observed and handled it. Thanks for any help, Jasper (SE QLD)
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
11.05 AM, 20 May 2010
Hi Kim,
This is not a beetle, but is a heteropteran bug (australianmuseum.net.au/What-are-the-differences-between-bugs-and-beetles). It is probably in either the family Pyrrhocoridae or Largidae, but I would need to see a specimen to identify it further.
kimandshane
2.05 PM, 16 May 2010
Oops, attachment appeared to be unsuccessful. I shall attempt that again, Kim
Comment Attachment
kimandshane
1.05 PM, 16 May 2010
Could you help us identify this insect, currently invading our house in very large numbers. They have a very bright orange body beneath the wings and seem to avoid the warmer/sunlight areas, but love getting between the screens and glass of the windows. apology for image quality, zoom on camera less than brilliant Thanks, Kim
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
3.04 PM, 14 April 2010
Hi Bruce,
There is no shortcut method unfortunately - you would do it by contributing a new entry under the page in question then uploading the image from your camera/computer.
cheers,
Dave.
Bruce Sneesby
2.03 PM, 28 March 2010
Would like to upload assassin bug image to where you indicated but don't know how. Can you advise?
Dave Britton
11.03 AM, 08 March 2010
Dear Bruce,
The insect in the photo is not a beetle, but is an assassin bug in the genus Pristhesancus (Hemiptera: Reduviidae). The specimen demonstrates a key feature that identifies this insect as a true bug in that the piercing/sucking mouthparts are clearly visible under the head. These mouthparts are also a good reason not to handle this bug, as they are capable of giving a very nasty bite. Assassin bugs are also very useful biological control agents, as they are voracious feeders on other insects. This species is particularly fond of caterpillars. It would be great if you could repost this image in australianmuseum.net.au/Bugs-Order-Hemiptera/
Bruce Sneesby
4.03 PM, 06 March 2010
Any chance Dave Britton can identify my bug posted in my comment of 27 Feb 2010?
Bruce Sneesby
3.02 PM, 27 February 2010
Can you identify this bug (weevil?) for me. I photographed it about a week ago on the NSW mid-north coast at Bellingen.
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
2.02 PM, 25 February 2010
Hi Dael,
The beetle is a native species of longicorn beetle in the genus Piesarthrius (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae). It is not a known pest. Most longicorn beetles have larvae that bore in wood, but very few attack wood that it is in service, or damage living trees.
cjveitch
3.02 PM, 24 February 2010
Thank you for the ID Dave. I have uploaded the image as requested. Cheers Colin
Dael
12.02 PM, 17 February 2010
Hi, I found this in my house, northwest of Taree NSW. I'm hoping it is a native beetle. Any ideas? Thanks Dael
Comment Attachment
Dave Britton
3.02 PM, 04 February 2010
Hi Colin,
The insect you have photographed here is the cotton harlequin bug Tectocoris diophthalmus (Hemiptera: Scutelleridae)- they superficially resemble beetles, but can be identified by the sucking mouthparts (chewing in beetles) and partially membranous forewings (fully hardened in beetles). It would be great if you could repost your image in the comments on australianmuseum.net.au/Cotton-Harlequin-Bug/
cjveitch
7.01 PM, 27 January 2010
Hi, I found this beetle in the garden and haven't seen one like it before. It resembles a ladybug but seemed to be the wrong shape (and is a bit bigger) and coloring. Is it common - and what is it? Any help would be appreciated! Sorry about the picture quality but I wanted to do it quickly so I could release it back into the garden. Cheers Colin
Comment Attachment
Report misuse