The 5 Most Interesting And Particular Types Of Beetles
Beetles are a group of insects with a great morphological diversity, and they can live in almost any habitat, even in water or in polar areas. In the following article we inform you about the 5 best known types of beetles.
How many types of beetles are there?
According to the research, there are more than 375,000 types of beetles or beetles. To enter this large family it is essential to ‘respect’ certain characteristics. To begin with, they must have chewing jaws, front wings that form rigid armor and a second pair of wings, some of which are atrophied and do not allow them to fly.
Some of the best known representatives of this group are:
1. The potato beetle
The potato beetle (whose correct name is Colorado beetle of the potato) is one of the most ‘hated’ and fought beetles. As the name suggests, he loves potatoes. Since it feeds on both leaves and bulbs, it is considered a pest that threatens this plant.
The potato beetle (see opening image of the article) is small in size: it measures one centimeter in length and its body has a rather characteristic color: yellow with black stripes. It is thought to be native to Mexico, although the variety of the species has expanded today, just like the potato.
2. The rhinoceros beetle
It is a nocturnal insect that lives mostly in the forests of Europe. It takes its name from the horn that has a head, but it is present only in males. Furthermore, it is a large beetle compared to other species.
The rhinoceros beetle is reddish brown in color, can measure around four centimeters, and is not considered harmful to agriculture because adults do not feed on plants. The larvae are not a risk to crops either, as their diet is mainly based on decaying plant material.
3. The dung beetle
The dung beetle is a very curious insect, whose action earned it the title of “sacred animal” for the Egyptians. The dung beetle forms balls of manure and excrement with its front legs and carries them long distances, until it finds an underground cave or tunnel to bury them.
Why do they do it? Because it is there where the female deposits her eggs and after fermentation the larvae are formed, which in turn feed on the manure! The mother’s work during this process is quite sacrificial, as it ensures that no fungi form and that the temperature is always adequate. At the end of his task, he usually dies.
4. The lily leaf beetle
The lily leaf beetle is another of the best-known types of beetles due to its ability to “walk on water” or, rather, fly across a lake at high speed. This small red insect, which is considered a plague for some plants, is also the protagonist of several records.
The speed reached by the lily leaf beetle is 1.8 km per hour. It may seem like very little, but if we consider its size, it is as if a human being could run at 500 km / h. This is thanks to its legs with hairs that repel water and the claws that adhere to the surface.
5. The Goliath beetle
To finish this list of types of beetles, the oldest specimen of the family could not be missing, hence its name: Goliath (or Hercules). This insect is the largest in the world: it can measure more than 10 centimeters in length.
It lives in the tropical forests of Africa and when it flies it produces a sound similar to that of a helicopter. It feeds on pollen, nectar, sap and fruit when adult and on decaying carcasses during the larval stage.
