Giant Gymnopleurus vs Malaysian Trilobite Beetle

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Giant Gymnopleurus Malaysian Trilobite Beetle
Scientific Name Gymnopleurus virens Platerodrilus ruficollis
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Scarabaeidae Lycidae
Size 12-18 mm 40-80 mm females, 8-10 mm males
Habitat Grasslands Woodlands
Diet Dung Feeders Wood Feeders
Regions Sub-Saharan Africa Southeast Asia (Malaysia, Borneo, Sumatra, Indonesia)
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Giant Gymnopleurus

A medium-sized roller dung beetle with a coppery-green sheen and a nearly spherical body shape. It is a rapid roller, moving dung balls quickly across sun-baked grasslands. Diurnal and very heat-tolerant.

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Did You Know?

Its round, compact body shape minimizes water loss in the hot, dry environments it inhabits.

Malaysian Trilobite Beetle

A bizarre beetle whose larviform females retain a flat, segmented larval appearance throughout life, resembling ancient trilobites. Males are small, winged, and conventionally beetle-shaped.

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Did You Know?

The flat, armored female looks so unlike a typical beetle that it was originally described as a separate species from the male.