Spotted Brown Rove Beetle vs West African Lantern Bug

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Spotted Brown Rove Beetle West African Lantern Bug
Scientific Name Staphylinus fossor Zanna tenebrosa
Order Coleoptera Hemiptera
Family Staphylinidae Fulgoridae
Size 14-18 mm 50-70 mm including head process
Habitat Forests Forests
Diet Predators Wood Feeders
Regions Europe, Central Asia West and Central Africa (Cameroon, Gabon, DRC, Nigeria)
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Spotted Brown Rove Beetle

A large, robust rove beetle with a brown body covered in patches of golden and dark setae. It is a ground-dwelling predator found in grasslands and forest edges across the Palearctic.

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Did You Know?

This beetle's powerful mandibles can crush snail shells, giving it access to a food source unavailable to most other rove beetles.

West African Lantern Bug

A large planthopper with an elongated head process and colorful wings. The forewings are cryptically patterned while the hindwings display bright colors when spread. Despite its name, it does not produce light.

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Did You Know?

The enlarged head process was once thought to glow in the dark, giving this group its misleading common name of lantern bugs.