Red Mushroom Beetle vs Spring Pygmy Firefly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Red Mushroom Beetle Spring Pygmy Firefly
Scientific Name Oxyporus rufus Pleotomus pallens
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Staphylinidae Lampyridae
Size 7-12 mm 5-8 mm
Habitat Woodlands Underground
Diet Herbivores Omnivores
Regions Europe, Asia Eastern North America
Conservation Least Concern Not Evaluated

Red Mushroom Beetle

A striking red and black rove beetle that lives in and feeds on fresh mushroom caps. Has large, powerful mandibles for cutting fungal tissue. One of the few herbivorous rove beetles.

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Did You Know?

Unusual among rove beetles for being a herbivore, with powerful mandibles adapted for cutting through fungal tissue.

Spring Pygmy Firefly

A tiny, rarely seen firefly of the eastern United States with a very short adult life span. Males produce faint, sporadic greenish flashes close to the ground.

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Did You Know?

Females are wingless and larviform, and were once classified as a completely separate species from the males.