Types of Beetles

The earth contains about 800,000 insect species and the widest insect group (by far!) is the beetle. The different types of beetles are classified into the following groups: 

The order coleoptera type of beetle is further divided into suborders, including: Archpstemata Myxophaga Polygphaga Adephaga

These suborders will have further extending groupings, and when considering the overall count of different types of beetle species, they range up to 30,000 well-known types of beetles in Canada and the USA.

Different types of beetles - characteristic features and behaviors for identification

• Ground Beetles – They come under the family name Carabidae and they are one among the largest of beetle types, with a count of about 40,000 species. This beetle will measure up to 1 inch long and they are usually brown or black in color. Most beetles of this type will complete a single generation, whereas a few others might complete around 2 or 3 generations. Adult ground beetles will feed on fungi, decayed plants and pollen, although some ground beetles stick with seeds and other agricultural crops.  

Lady Beetles – This type of beetle belongs to the Coccinellidae family and they are known as the ladybugs. With a round or oval convex body, these beetles are provided with contrasting colors. They are usually large and come in orange and red in color along with black dots.

• Rove Beetles – This beetle type belong to the Staphylinidae family. They come from huge and diversifying group of about 29,000 species. The Rove beetles are slender, small, and they are usually black in color. As the elytra are short, the abdominal region is exposed.  

• Fireflies – In the Lampyridae family, this group will involve 2,000 species with dark color and medium size. With soft and flexible elytra, these fireflies stay in the foliage during the day hours and they fly during night. They stick with snails and slugs for food and they also eat cutworms, soft bodied insects, leaf beetle larvae, and earworms. Adult beetles will fly with flashing colorful lights, particularly during the time of mating process. 

• Soldier Beetles – This type of beetle belongs to the family Cantharidae and they come with an approximate count of about 4,500 species. This type of soldier beetle is typically soft and has elongated bodies. They are often found in colorful, smelling flowers. They stick with insects that are soft bodied and the larvae will even feed on eggs or maggots, caterpillars and hoppers. 

• Leaf Beetles – These types of beetles come with wide coverage, ranging up to 35,000 species. They have an elongated body and they are oval in shape. The color patterns will vary, and the shape is not regular. The larvae and adults feed on fresh plants, and the adult leaf beetles feed on flowers and foliage.

• Scarab Beetles – With a count of more than 16,500 species, the scarab beetles come under the family Scarabaeidae. These types of beetles are found across the globe, and include dung beetles, chafers and more. With convex shaped and elongated oval bodies, they look bright. They feed on plants and are usually found in gardens. 

• Click Beetles – They come under the family group named Elateridae and these beetles are identified with their slender and shiny, with a hard body. The click beetles are found usually on leaves and flowers, where the larvae are known to be wireworms that live in the decayed vegetables, under bark, and in the soil. Some species in this variety will stick on seeds and roots, whereas some other species will stick on insects or either invertebrates. 

That’s our start on the types of beetles for now. Be sure to check back with us as we add to our discussion and identification of different types of beetles!