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NOTE: As of 2014, the California Beetle Project page is no longer updated. The original database and list of California beetles in the menu on the left will remain for the time being, but the information contained within is not necessarily current. SBMNH Entomology Curator Matthew L. Gimmel has divided up the function of the original database into two conceptual halves:

  1. The SBMNH Entomology specimen-level database, including all SBMNH beetle specimens included in the CBP database, which is now available (and ever-growing) through the ecdysis portal at https://serv.biokic.asu.edu/ecdysis/

  2. A literature- (and available specimen-)based checklist.
    3. of the Coleoptera of California, which is being revised and re-compiled by Dr. Gimmel, and, as of January 2017, is about 85% complete.



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Last updated 01/16/2009

 California Beetle Project > Species Pages > Amphicyrta dentipes

Classification

Scientific name: Amphicyrta dentipes Erichson
    Order Coleoptera
    Superfamily Byrrhoidea
    Family Byrrhidae

Images (click to enlarge)

What it looks like: 8-10 mm in length. Its body is smooth, robust, and oval-shaped. It is a deep, dark brown color and has long, slender antennae.

Where you'll find it: This species can be found from central California to southwestern Oregon.

Natural History: These beetles can live in several different habitats, including prairies and oak-pine woodlands. While other species in the family primarily feed on mosses, A. dentipes feeds on succulent leaves, meadow herbs, and deciduous shrubs. They have also been known to damage the occasional vegetable and flower garden, and to take up residence in weedy lawns.

This page was written by Maren Farnum, a 2005 California Beetle Project intern.



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