Rove beetle
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(thousands, see text) |
The rove beetles are a large family (Staphylinidae) of beetles, primarily distinguished by their short elytra that leave more than half of their abdomens exposed. With over 46,000 species in thousands of genera, the family is the largest or second-largest family of beetles (other contender?), and also ancient, with fossil rove beetles known from the Triassic, 200 million years ago.
As might be expected for such a large family, there is considerable variation among the species. Sizes range from 1 to 35 mm (1.5 inches), with most in the 2-8 mm range, and the form is generally elongate, with some ovoid. Colors range from yellow to reddish-brown to brown to black. The antennae are usually 11 segments and filiform, with moderate clubbing in some genera. The abdomen may be very long and flexible, and some types of rove beetles superficially resemble earwigs.
Rove beetles are known from every type of habitat that beetles occur in, and their diets include just about everything except the living tissues of higher plants. Most rove beetles are predators of insects and other kinds of invertebrates, living in forest leaf litter and similar kinds of decaying plant matter. They are also commonly found under stones, and around freshwater margins. Several types are known to live on ocean shores that are submerged at high tide, several species have adapted to live in ant and termite colonies, and some are "parasites" of mammals that actually benefit their hosts by eating fleas and other parasites.
Although rove beetles' appetites for other insects would seem to make them obvious candidates for biological control of pests, and empirically they are believed to be important controls in the wild, experiments with using them have not been notably successful.
Classification of the 46,275 (as of 1998) staphylinid species is ongoing and controversial, with some workers proposing an organization of as many as ten separate families, but the current favored system is one of 31 subfamilies, about 100 tribes (some grouped into supertribes), and about 3,200 genera. About 400 new species are being described each year, and some estimates suggest 3/4 of tropical species are as yet undescribed.
Notable species:
Subfamilies:
- Omaliinae
- Empelinae
- Proteininae
- Pselaphinae
- Glypholomatinae
- Microsilphinae
- Micropeplinae
- Neophoninae
- Dasycerinae
- Protopselaphinae
- Oxyporinae
- Megalopsidiinae
- Steninae
- Euaesthetinae
- Solieriinae
- Leptotyphlinae
- Pseudopsinae
- Paederinae
- Staphylininae
Reference
- Ross H. Arnett, Jr. and Michael C. Thomas, American Beetles (CRC Press, 2001), vol. 1