{"id":31560,"date":"2023-09-01T22:37:08","date_gmt":"2023-09-01T20:37:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.discoverwildlife.com\/?p=79156"},"modified":"2023-09-01T23:35:38","modified_gmt":"2023-09-01T21:35:38","slug":"why-do-beetles-come-in-a-variety-of-shapes","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/why-do-beetles-come-in-a-variety-of-shapes\/","title":{"rendered":"Why do beetles come in a variety of shapes?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Beetles are arguably the most important and diverse organisms on Earth. Richard Jones takes a look at the assortment of shapes they come in <\/p>

By Richard Jones\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Friday, 01 September 2023 at 20:37 PM<\/p>

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Th<\/span>e trouble is: we don\u2019t actually know how many species of beetles are out there. About 400,000 species have been described in scientific books and journals, and representative specimens are housed in the world\u2019s museums, but surveys in the tropics suggest the true total may be anywhere from three to 33 million species \u2013 and they come in a variety of shapes and sizes\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

Ground beetles in the family Carabidae are familiar to all, whether running about in the sunshine across the patio, or hiding under a flowerpot or log. <\/span><\/p>\n

They might be considered \u2018typical\u2019 beetles, with their long legs, oval elytra, narrow or heart-shaped pronotum, prominent head and slender antennae. But other beetle families have evolved a bizarre and bewildering array of body forms.<\/span><\/p>\n

The domed, almost hemispherical spottiness of a ladybird<\/a><\/strong> contrasts with the flat-flanged rim of a green tortoise beetle, Cassida viridis<\/em>, under which \u2013 if attacked \u2013 it can withdraw its head, legs and antennae to clamp down onto a leaf surface. <\/span><\/p>\n

The cylindrical form of the pinhole borer, Platypus cylindrus<\/em>, is ideal for tunnelling perpendicularly into thick oak bark, while the steam-rolled flatness of\u00a0 <\/span>Hololepta plana<\/em> is perfectly suited to life pressing beneath rotten bark of decaying poplar trees as it pursues the larvae of other insects in the dank fungoid layer.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the other extreme, the glossy metallic baubles of the leaf beetles (Chrysolina<\/em> and Cryptocephalus<\/em> are good examples) are convex to the point of globularity. They live an exposed life feeding on leaves and flowers, so waddle in the open rather than shimmying into the undergrowth. And anyone lucky enough to find an oil beetle<\/a><\/strong> (Meloe) may wonder at the female\u2019s ability to drag herself about through the grass. Her distended abdomen may contain 40,000 eggs.<\/span><\/p>\n

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