Family: Lycidae (net-winged beetles)
Life > Eukaryotes > Opisthokonta > Metazoa (animals) > Bilateria > Ecdysozoa > Panarthropoda > Tritocerebra > Arthopoda > Mandibulata > Atelocerata > Panhexapoda > Hexapoda
> Insecta
(insects) > Dicondyla > Pterygota > Metapterygota > Neoptera > Eumetabola >
Holometabola > Coleoptera
(beetles)
> Polyphaga > Superfamily: Cantharoidea
Small to medium sized (6-25mm), orange and black, soft-bodied beetles. The
elytra bear intricate network of ridges, hence the name, although the patterning
sometimes looks like filigree. The head is almost entirely hidden by the
pronotum and the elytra are sometimes broadly expanded and these species look
like seeds.
Adults are active by day and occur on various plants and grasses and also feed
on nectar. The larvae live in decaying wood and possibly feed on fungi. The
orange and black colouration is mimicked by various insects as these animals
contain cantharadin and are distasteful to birds and other predators.
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