Scientific name Lycidae Order Beetle | Superfamily Elateroidea Rank Family | |
Similar Beetle, Insect, Soldier beetle, Cleridae, Mordellidae | ||
Net winged beetle lycidae benibatarus thoracicus on leaf
The Lycidae are a family in the beetle order Coleoptera, members of which are commonly called net-winged beetles.
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Description
Beetles of this family are elongated and usually found on flowers or stems. Adults are about 10-15 mm in length, while females are a bit larger. The adults of some species are nectarivores, while some may have short adult lives during which they may not feed at all. The head is triangular and the antennae are long, thick, and serrated. Most of them are brick-red in colour. They are protected from predators by being toxic. The predaceous larvae grow under bark or in leaf litter.
Distribution
These beetles are cosmopolitan, being found in Nearctic, Palearctic, Neotropical, Afrotropical, Oriental, and Australian ecoregions. Calopteron discrepans is found in the Eastern United States from New England south to Florida.
