Bark-crevice Rove Beetle vs Railroad Worm

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Bark-crevice Rove Beetle Railroad Worm
Scientific Name Nudobius lentus Phrixothrix hirtus
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Staphylinidae Phengodidae
Size 6-9 mm 30-65 mm (larvae)
Habitat Woodlands Underground
Diet Predators Omnivores
Regions Europe, Northern Asia South America
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Bark-crevice Rove Beetle

A slender, flattened rove beetle adapted for life under tight-fitting bark. Its compressed body and strong legs allow it to navigate the narrow subcortical habitat where it hunts bark beetle larvae.

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Did You Know?

This beetle is considered a natural enemy of the European spruce bark beetle and helps regulate bark beetle populations in managed forests.

Railroad Worm

A beetle larva with 11 pairs of green-glowing lateral organs and a red-glowing headlamp — the only land animal that produces two different colors of bioluminescence simultaneously.

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Did You Know?

The railroad worm is the only terrestrial animal that glows in two colors at once — green along its sides like railway car windows and red on its head like a locomotive.