Anthia

Anthia is a genus of the ground beetle family, the Carabidae. Species of Anthia can spray a jet of formic acid up to 30 centimetres (12 in), which if not treated, can cause blindness in animals which harass the beetles.

Contents

• Unpacking and feeding anthia fabricii african predatory beetle
• Anthia cinctipennis feeding
• Species
• References

In general the beetles are large, armored, fast-moving, with prominent, powerful, sharp mandibles. Some are diurnal predators in semi-arid habitats, some are nocturnal.

The genus is one of a group of similar taxa of predatory Carabidae that has been the subject of considerable taxonomic confusion. Several species here and elsewhere included within the genus Anthia are occasionally referred to as belonging to the genus Thermophilum (e.g. Anthia fornasinii referred to as Thermophilum fornasinii) Furthermore, the spelling has undergone a range of errors and disputes. The currently accepted spelling is Termophilum but Thermophilum and Thermophila have been variously used in the past, and even the outright misspelling "Thermophilium" has appeared in some books.