Rugose Christmas Beetle vs Tachydromia Dance Fly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Rugose Christmas Beetle Tachydromia Dance Fly
Scientific Name Anoplognathus rugosus Tachydromia umbrarum
Order Coleoptera Diptera
Family Scarabaeidae Hybotidae
Size 18-24 mm 2-3 mm
Habitat Woodlands Woodlands
Diet Root Feeders Predators
Regions Australia Europe
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Rugose Christmas Beetle

A robust dark brown scarab with distinctly wrinkled elytra found in southeastern Australia. Adults are attracted to lights during warm summer evenings.

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Did You Know?

Their numbers have declined significantly in Sydney since the 1990s due to habitat loss.

Tachydromia Dance Fly

A tiny wingless dance fly that runs rapidly over tree bark hunting for small arthropods. Despite being flightless, it is an agile predator of mites and springtails on trunk surfaces.

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Did You Know?

It is one of the few completely wingless flies, sprinting across tree bark at high speed to catch tiny prey.