Tooth-Necked Fungus Beetle vs Atemeles Ant Guest Beetle

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Tooth-Necked Fungus Beetle Atemeles Ant Guest Beetle
Scientific Name Bolitotherus cornutus Lomechusoides strumosus
Order Coleoptera Coleoptera
Family Tenebrionidae Staphylinidae
Size 10-12 mm 5-6 mm
Habitat Woodlands Woodlands
Diet Fungus Feeders Parasites
Regions Eastern North America Central Europe
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Tooth-Necked Fungus Beetle

A heavily armored, warty brown beetle that feeds on shelf fungi on dead trees. Males have two prominent horns on the thorax.

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Did You Know?

It plays dead so convincingly that it is nearly impossible to distinguish from a piece of bark.

Atemeles Ant Guest Beetle

A parasitic rove beetle that lives in ant nests, switching between Formica and Myrmica host species seasonally. Its larvae are raised by ants alongside their own brood.

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Did You Know?

It migrates between two different ant species each year, overwintering with one and breeding with another.