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Rain beetle (female)

Pleocomo.,spp

Photo by KarenP
Published on Project Noah
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33.0477, -117.297

Field Notes

Description:

I found this female rain beetle hurrying across the trail from the parking lot to Moonlight Beach. There were several male beetles flying around in the area. Until I looked, I mistook this beetle for a June Bug. The antennae with clubbed lamellae helped me ID this beetle.

Habitat:

From Wikipedia. Larvae have the typical scarabaeiform characteristics, C-shaped bodies generally a creamy white. They feed on roots in the soil, often deep beneath the host plant. Details of the larval stage are only known for some species; they have nine or more instars, and may take up to 13 years to mature. After a late summer pupation, adults of both sexes dig their way to the surface, emerging around the onset of the fall/winter rainy season typical of, for instance, California's climate; some species are active as late as early spring. Females have only vestigial wings, so the males fly around (often while it is raining), homing in on pheromones released by the females. They mate on the surface or in a burrow dug out by the female, then the female lays eggs in the bottom of the burrow. The "triggering" conditions required for some species to fly are so stringent that a given population may only be active for a single day in a given year. Males are commonly attracted to bright lights.

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Photographed
PublishedMarch 14, 2012

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