Black Soldier Fly vs Rough-Skinned Diving Beetle

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Black Soldier Fly Rough-Skinned Diving Beetle
Scientific Name Hermetia illucens Dytiscus lapponicus
Order Diptera Coleoptera
Family Stratiomyidae Dytiscidae
Size 15-20 mm 24-30 mm
Habitat Underground Mountains
Diet Omnivores Omnivores
Regions North America, South America, Central America, Asia, Oceania Northern Europe, Northern Asia
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Black Soldier Fly

A large, wasp-like fly with a shiny black body and translucent areas on the abdomen. Its larvae are extraordinarily efficient at converting organic waste into protein and fat.

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Did You Know?

Black soldier fly larvae can reduce food waste mass by 95 percent in days, and the resulting protein-rich larvae are increasingly farmed as sustainable animal feed.

Rough-Skinned Diving Beetle

A large diving beetle of northern and alpine regions across Europe and Asia. Both sexes have finely sculptured elytra, distinguishing it from the great diving beetle.

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Did You Know?

It is one of the few large predatory beetles adapted to survive the extreme cold of subarctic lakes.