Surface-dwelling-beetles
Guides
Gyrininae
whirligig beetles, gyrinine beetles
Gyrininae is the largest subfamily of Gyrinidae, containing over 740 described extant species. These beetles are commonly known as whirligig beetles for their characteristic circling behavior on water surfaces. The subfamily comprises three tribes: Dineutini, Gyrinini, and Orectochilini, with genera distributed across all major biogeographic regions. Members occupy diverse freshwater habitats from lentic to lotic systems.