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Perhaps the best known species is Zophobas morio, synonymously known as Zophobas atratus, a beetle whose larvae are robust mealworms sold as food for pets [4] such as lizards. The larvae are known commonly as "superworms". [5] Superworms should not be confused with darkling beetle mealworms sprayed with juvenile hormone. [6]
Click beetle larvae, called wireworms, are usually saprophagous, living on dead organisms, but some species are serious agricultural pests, and others are active predators of other insect larvae. Some elaterid species are bioluminescent in both larval and adult form, such as those of the genus Pyrophorus .
Larvae of the yellow mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor) are commonly used as feeder insects for reptiles and amphibians. Other Tenebrio and Tribolium species are also bred as animal food. The red flour beetle ( Tribolium castaneum ) is a popular genetics model organism , especially in studies of intragenomic conflict and population ecology .
The body is usually sub-parallel and slightly flattened, but other shapes have evolved to suit different needs, such as cylindrical for boring larvae, strongly flattened for larvae living under bark, and c-shaped and grub-like for larvae with specialised developmental strategies (e.g. post-triungulin larvae of Rhipiphoridae and Meloidae).
Even the soldier beetle’s thorax is similar to that of many firefly species. Adult bugs feed on nectar, pollen, and other smaller insects, while their larvae feed on snails and other small ...
Tenebrionid beetles occupy ecological niches in mainly deserts and forests as plant scavengers. Most species are generalistic omnivores, and feed on decaying leaves, rotting wood, fresh plant matter, dead insects, and fungi as larvae and adults. [10] Several genera, including Bolitotherus, are specialized fungivores which feed on polypores.
The larvae are odor-free, but the adult beetles possess a pungent chemical defense that may be released when provoked. Zophobas atratus can easily be contained, making them ideal for breeding to feed a collection of captive insectivores. The nutritional profile of the larvae is "46.80% proteins, 43.64% lipids, 8.17% ashes and 1.39% ...
The larvae of the litter beetle, like certain other larvae of darkling beetles such as mealworms, are used as animal feed, e.g., fed to captive reptiles. [ 16 ] [ 17 ] [ 18 ] They have been reported as a good first food for Central American wood turtle ( Rhinoclemmys pulcherrima mannii ) hatchlings, because they are more active than common ...