Wooly Darkling Beetle
Eleodes osculans
Classification
- Phylum: Arthropoda
- Subphylum: Hexapoda
- Class: Insecta
- Order: Coleoptera
- Suborder: Polyphaga
- Superfamily: Tenebrionoidea
- Family: Tenebrionidae
- Subfamily: Blaptinae
- Tribe: Amphidorini
- Genus: Eleodes
- Species: osculans
Pronunciation
How to pronounce Eleodes osculans: /ɛˈliː.o.dɛs ˈɒs.kjʊ.lænz/
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Summary
Eleodes osculans, known as the wooly darkling beetle or woolly ground beetle, is recognized for its distinctive reddish-brown hair and typical defensive behavior of raising its hind end to secrete an unpleasant odor.
Physical Characteristics
Length of 12-16 mm; covered with erect reddish-brown hair on elytra, with a black exoskeleton.
Identification Tips
Distinguished from similar species such as E. nigropilosa and E. littoralis by the reddish-brown hair covering and size (E. nigropilosa is smaller with black hair).
Habitat
Common in wooded areas or chaparral in coastal southern and central California and Baja California.
Distribution
Found in British Columbia, California, and Utah.
Diet
Larvae feed on detritus.
Similar Taxa
Tags
- Wooly Darkling Beetle
- Coleoptera
- Insecta
- Eleodes osculans