Biology:Platerodrilus
Platerodrilus is a genus of beetles of the family Lycidae. They commonly appear in the literature under the name Duliticola, which is an obsolete junior synonym.[1] The females retain a larval form as adults (larviform females) and are about 40–80 mm in length. The females and larvae have a flattened, dark body with large scales over the head, resembling trilobites, hence the informal names trilobite beetle, trilobite larva or Sumatran trilobite larva. The females feed on rotting wood, fungi, slime molds, and other small organisms that help break down decaying matter.[2] Males are much smaller, 8–9 mm, resemble other lycid beetles, and likely feed on nectar for energy to fly and mate.[2] Species are found in tropical forests of India and Southeast Asia.
Although the females resemble the prehistoric trilobite, the trilobite beetle evolved approximately 47 million years ago, 200 million years after trilobites had gone extinct.[3] As only the females have this appearance the search for the species' males remained a mystery until Swedish zoologist Eric Mjöberg published a research paper describing them in 1925.[4]
Species
- "P. paradoxus group"
- "P. major group"
- "P. sinuatus group"
- Ungrouped
- Specimens of Platerodrilus
-
P. foliaceus -
P. maninjauensis -
P. montanus -
-
P. palawanensis, adult male -
-
P. sinabungensis, adult male -
P. talamauensis, adult male -
P. wittmeri -
P. sp. -
P. sp. -
P. sp. -
P. sp.
References
- ↑ Bocak, Ladislav; Masek, Michal (2014). "The taxonomy and diversity of Platerodrilus (Coleoptera, Lycidae) inferred from molecular data and morphology of adults and larvae". ZooKeys (426): 29–63. doi:10.3897/zookeys.426.7398. PMID 25147457.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Keeratipattarakarn, Kanitta; Wazed Tina (November 2022). "THE EXISTENCE OF PLATERODRILUS BEETLES IN NAKHON SI THAMMARAT PROVINCE, SOUTHERN THAILAND". https://www.researchgate.net/publication/365851566_THE_EXISTENCE_OF_PLATERODRILUS_BEETLES_IN_NAKHON_SI_THAMMARAT_PROVINCE_SOUTHERN_THAILAND.
- ↑ "Bizarre-Looking Beetle Has an Even Weirder Sex Life" (in en). 2016-10-27. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/rare-weird-insect-trilobite-beetle.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Mjöberg, Eric (1925). "The mystery of the so-called "trilobite larvae" or "Perty's larvae" definitely solved". Psyche: A Journal of Entomology 32 (3): 119–157. doi:10.1155/1925/19784. https://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/psyche/1925/019784.pdf.
- ↑ Duliticola paradoxa. (eol.org)
- ↑ Wong, A.T.C. (1996). "A new species of neotenous beetle, Duliticola hoiseni (Insecta: Coleoptera: Cantharoidea: Lycidae) from Peninsula Malaysia and Singapore". Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 41 (1): 173–187.
External links
Wikidata ☰ Q18584473 entry
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