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NOTE: As of 2014, the California Beetle Project page is no longer updated.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 > Lytta morrisoni

Classification

Scientific name: Lytta morrisoni (Horn)
Common name: Common name
    Order Coleoptera
    Superfamily Tenebrionoidea
    Family Meloidae

Images (click to enlarge)

What it looks like: These beetles are black with an orange or black pronotum. The frontal spot occupies about one third the space between the eyes. They can range from 12-17mm long.

Where you'll find it: These beetles are found in only a few localities in central and southern California.

Natural History: These beetles are known to be active in the mid to late spring. They are also considered a species of concern by the California Department of Fish and Game.

This page was written by Marina Herrera, a 2005 participant in the Quasars to Sea Stars teen program.




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