A few reasons why we can't generalize about
beetle families:
– There are many long-horned beetles that do
not have long horns.
– There are snout beetles without snouts.
– There are beetles with snouts that are not weevils.
– There are "June beetles" that appear in August.
– There are ground beetles that live in trees.
– There are aquatic beetles that never go near
water (some Hydrophilidae live in dung).
– There are ectoparasitic beetles.
– Many beetles have fused elytra, with flight
wings reduced to small pads.
– There are blind, eyeless subterranean beetles.
– There are beetles other than fireflies (Lampyridae)
that produce light.
– The same family may have species that range
in size from 1mm to 100mm.
– The same genus may have brightly colored species
as well as dull, uniformly colored species.
– The are many volumes of literature dealing
with the classification of beetles, but rarely do they
agree on higher classification.
We will introduce you to the diversity of beetles,
while emphasizing that this diversity will initially
make it seem difficult to become familiar with these
families.Once you have made a tentative identification,
be sure to check your textbook for comparison.
Since it is impractical to include all families here,
we have chosen to create a key for the more commonly
collected families. Keep this in mind when you
are identifiying specimens.