Narrow-mouth Ground Beetle vs Termitophilous Rove Beetle

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Narrow-mouth Ground Beetle Termitophilous Rove Beetle
Scientific Name Abax parallelepipedus Corotoca melantho
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Carabidae Staphylinidae
Size 18-22 mm 5-8 mm (body length without physogastric abdomen)
Habitat Woodlands Woodlands
Diet Predators Omnivores
Regions Western and Central Europe Brazil, tropical South America
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Narrow-mouth Ground Beetle

A large, shiny black ground beetle with a distinctive parallel-sided body shape. It is one of the most common large carabids in European woodlands, active at night under logs and stones.

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Did You Know?

Its perfectly rectangular body shape is so precise and regular that it was given the species name 'parallelepipedus,' meaning resembling a geometric parallelepiped.

Termitophilous Rove Beetle

A bizarre, physogastric rove beetle that lives inside termite nests in Brazil. The female's abdomen becomes enormously swollen and translucent, resembling a termite queen in miniature.

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Did You Know?

This is one of the only beetles known to give live birth (viviparity); fully formed larvae emerge from the female rather than eggs.