Four-Spotted Hister Beetle vs Hairy Rove Beetle

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Four-Spotted Hister Beetle Hairy Rove Beetle
Scientific Name Hister quadrimaculatus Creophilus maxillosus
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Histeridae Staphylinidae
Size 5-7 mm 12-23 mm
Habitat Heathland Woodlands
Diet Dung Feeders Predators
Regions Europe North America, Europe, Asia
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Four-Spotted Hister Beetle

A glossy black hister beetle with four orange-red spots on its wing cases. It is associated with mammal dung in pastures and heathlands.

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Did You Know?

It typically arrives at fresh dung within the first hour and remains for several days until the pat dries out.

Hairy Rove Beetle

A stocky rove beetle with distinctive patches of golden-grey hair on its elytra. It is commonly found on carrion where it hunts fly larvae.

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Did You Know?

Forensic entomologists use this beetle's presence on corpses to help estimate time of death.