Beetles

Information about Beetles:

Beetles – also called Coleoptera – are an order of insects. They are distinctive among all animals as the order contains more species than other on the planet, with some 400,000 different species having been indentified, which is roughly 40% of the total all living species. Some estimates put the undiscovered species of beetles in the millions.  Beetles are found in nearly all habitats, but not in the ocean or the polar regions. These insects are generally characterized by having a rigid exoskeleton and hard forewings that can be folded away.

Their diets vary, but many feed on plants, fungi and animal matter. Some are omnivorous and will attack and kill birds, mammals, and other invertebrates for food. Beetles are endopterygotes meaning that they will go through stages of metamorphosis; from egg, to larva, to pupa then into an adult. Most Beetles can fly, although somewhat clumsily and most not for long distance. The sound of a Goliath Beetle flying has been likened to a helicopter. Underwater beetles will take their own supply of air underwater when they go.

Many beetles are pests and cost millions of dollars in damage to crops around the world. Some beetles, like the ladybug, are sometimes seen as beneficial as they will prey on insects that would otherwise feed on crops. The ancient Egyptians revered some species of beetle (sometimes called a ‘scarab’) and likened them to the god Khepri.