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NOTE: As of 2014, the California Beetle Project page is no longer updated.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

Classification

Scientific name: Nitidotachinus agilis Horn
    Order Coleoptera
    Superfamily Staphylinoidea
    Family Staphylinidae

Images (click to enlarge)

What it looks like: 4.0-5.0 mm in length. Its body is tear-drop shaped, and rather flattened, with long, slender antennae. It has short elytra that leave most of the abdomen exposed. The abdomen has a combination of long and short hairs protruding from the edges. The legs are long and covered in short, bristle-like hairs. The entire body is shiny and displays varying shades of reddish-brown.

Where you'll find it: This species ranges from Oregon east to Idaho and down to southern California and Arizona.

Natural History: As adults, these beetles are mostly found in June and July and commonly occur in damp leaf litter near streams and ponds.

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




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