Rotting-wood
Guides
Monommatini
monommatid beetles, opossum beetles
Monommatini is a tribe of beetles within the ironclad beetle family Zopheridae, containing approximately 15 genera and 300 described species. These beetles are found worldwide, with highest diversity in Madagascar. They are strongly associated with decaying plant matter, particularly the dry rotting cambium of trees and plants in the family Agavaceae. Historically treated as a separate family (Monommidae) or subfamily (Monommatinae), they are now classified as a tribe within Zopherinae. Recent authors have proposed the common name 'opossum beetles' for this group.
Pteryx
Pteryx is a genus of minute feather-winged beetles in the family Ptiliidae. Adults are less than 1 mm in length and inhabit rotting wood, particularly under bark of decaying logs and stumps. The genus exhibits wing polymorphism, with individuals occurring in either a normal winged form or a vestigial-winged neonate form characterized by pale pigmentation and reduced eyes. Pteryx is distributed across the Northern Hemisphere in Eurasia and North America, with highest abundance in northern bogs and swampy habitats.
Xylota
Leafwalkers and Forest Flies
Xylota is a Holarctic genus of hoverflies (family Syrphidae) comprising over 100 described species, with 12 species occurring in Europe. Adults are characterized by their elongate body form and association with woodland habitats. Unlike most syrphid flies, many Xylota species rarely visit flowers, instead feeding on pollen gathered from leaf surfaces. Larvae are saprophytic, developing in rotting wood of both broadleaved and coniferous trees.
Zopherinae
ironclad beetles
Zopherinae is a subfamily of beetles commonly known as ironclad beetles, characterized by exceptionally hardened exoskeletons. The subfamily currently contains eight genera across two tribes: seven genera in Zopherini and the monotypic genus Phellopsis in its own tribe Phellopsini. Historically treated as a family alongside Usechinae, Zopherinae is now classified within the expanded family Zopheridae. These beetles are primarily associated with rotting wood and are known to be fungivores.