Source: Wikipedia
| Eleodes gigantea | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Family: | Tenebrionidae |
| Genus: | Eleodes |
| Species: | E. gigantea
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| Binomial name | |
| Eleodes gigantea Mannerheim, 1843
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Eleodes gigantea is a species of desert stink beetle or darkling beetle[1] in the family Tenebrionidae.[2][3][4] They can be found from San Francisco, California down to Tijuana, Mexico, however, they are more typically located in the lower half of California from Santa Cruz to San Diego.[5]
They typically have a smooth black elytron and like other species of Eleodes, when frightened they secrete benzoquinone[6] and upturn their bodies to spray it. The secretion is orange in color and has a strong odor that causes the eyes to water.[7]
Eleodes gigantea meridionalis have been found in the La Brea Tar Pits[8] and some of the earliest reports of the species date back to 1918.[5] They are most active during sundown.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ Braun, Jenna; Westphal, Michael; Lortie, Christopher J. (September 2021). "The shrub Ephedra californica facilitates arthropod communities along a regional desert climatic gradient". Ecosphere. 12 (9): e03760. doi:10.1002/ecs2.3760.
- ^ "Eleodes gigantea". Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
- ^ "Eleodes gigantea species Information". BugGuide.net. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
- ^ Bousquet, Yves; Thomas, Donald B.; Bouchard, Patrice; Smith, Aaron D.; et al. (2018). "Catalogue of Tenebrionidae (Coleoptera) of North America". ZooKeys. 728: 1–455. doi:10.3897/zookeys.728.20602. PMC 5799738. PMID 29416389.
- ^ a b Blaisdell, FE (1918). "Studies in the tenebrionid tribe Eleodiini. No. 4 (Coleop.)" (PDF). Entomological News. 29: 380–387. Retrieved September 19, 2024.
- ^ Holliday, Alison E.; Walker, Faye M.; Brodie, Edmund D.; Formica, Vincent A. (2009-11-01). "Differences in Defensive Volatiles of the Forked Fungus Beetle, Bolitotherus cornutus, Living on Two Species of Fungus". Journal of Chemical Ecology. 35 (11): 1302–1308. doi:10.1007/s10886-009-9712-7. PMID 19936835.
- ^ a b Emerton, J. H. (1921). "Notes on Canadian and Arctic spiders". Psyche: 147–148. doi:10.1155/1921/36012.
- ^ "Invertebrate Collections". La Brea Tar Pits & Museum.
Further reading
[edit]- Johnston, M. A. (2016). "Redefinition of the Eleodes Eschscholtz subgenera Tricheleodes Blaisdell and Pseudeleodes Blaisdell". Annales Zoologici. 66 (4): 665–679. doi:10.3161/00034541ANZ2016.66.4.018. S2CID 90125600.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Eleodes gigantea at Wikimedia Commons
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