Cowpea Weevil vs Large Tropical Rove Beetle

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Cowpea Weevil Large Tropical Rove Beetle
Scientific Name Callosobruchus maculatus Hesperus rufipennis
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Chrysomelidae Staphylinidae
Size 2-4 mm 18-25 mm
Habitat Farmland Forests
Diet Seed Feeders Predators
Regions Africa (native), pantropical, cosmopolitan West Africa, Central Africa
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Cowpea Weevil

A small, reddish-brown to dark beetle with mottled elytra and a prominent pygidium bearing two dark spots. It is one of the most destructive pests of stored cowpeas and other pulses.

💡

Did You Know?

Females glue their eggs directly onto the surface of bean seeds, and the larvae bore into the seed immediately upon hatching.

Large Tropical Rove Beetle

A large, impressive tropical rove beetle with red elytra and a black head and pronotum. It is one of the larger staphylinids in the African tropical forest fauna.

💡

Did You Know?

This beetle can deliver a painful bite with its powerful mandibles if handled carelessly, one of the few rove beetles capable of breaking human skin.