Pine Shoot Beetle vs Black Aphodius

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Pine Shoot Beetle Black Aphodius
Scientific Name Tomicus piniperda Aphodius fimetarius
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Curculionidae (Scolytinae) Scarabaeidae
Size 3.5–5 mm 5-8 mm
Habitat Farmland Farmland
Diet Wood Feeders Dung Feeders
Regions Europe, Asia, North America Europe, North America, Asia
Conservation Not Evaluated Least Concern

Pine Shoot Beetle

A bark beetle that breeds in pine logs and stumps, then feeds inside live pine shoots. It is an invasive pest in North America.

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Did You Know?

Adults hollow out the centers of pine shoots, causing them to break off in the wind and litter the forest floor.

Black Aphodius

A small dweller dung beetle with a black head and pronotum and reddish-brown elytra. It lives directly within dung pats rather than tunneling or rolling. One of the most common and widespread dung beetles in the Northern Hemisphere.

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Did You Know?

Unlike roller and tunneler species, dwellers complete their entire life cycle within the dung pat itself.