Sculpted Rove Beetle vs Gershner's Jumping Bristletail

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Sculpted Rove Beetle Gershner's Jumping Bristletail
Scientific Name Anotylus sculpturatus Pedetontus gershneri
Order Coleoptera Archaeognatha
Family Staphylinidae Machilidae
Size 3-4 mm 8-10 mm
Habitat Gardens Woodlands
Diet Detritivores Detritivores
Regions Europe, Western Asia, introduced globally United States
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Sculpted Rove Beetle

A small, stout oxytelline rove beetle with deeply sculptured integument and a distinctively broad, flat body. It is a very common species in agricultural and garden compost across Europe.

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Did You Know?

Enormous swarms of this beetle sometimes emerge from compost heaps and can be seen flying in dense clouds at dusk.

Gershner's Jumping Bristletail

A North American jumping bristletail found in leaf litter and under bark. It has a distinctly humped thorax and long tail filaments.

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Did You Know?

Like all Archaeognatha, it molts throughout its entire adult life.