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SOFT-WINGED FLOWER BEETLES

MELYRIDAE

T

he family Melyridae is called soft-winged

flower beetles because the elytra, in many

beetles one of the hardest parts of the body, are not

very sclerotized; in fact, the whole exoskeleton is

quite flimsy. They were combined with the soldier

beetles (Cantharidae) and some other superficially

similar families in a group called Malacoderms

(meaning “soft skinned”), but these families were

found not to be closely related.

Adult Melyridae are short-lived, and are often

brightly colored in red, yellow, and metallic green,

warning of their potential toxicity. Several species,

especially in the subfamily Malachiinae, have

colorful sacs along the sides of the body, which they

inflate as a threat display when disturbed, sometimes

combined with a smell. Like many beetles that have

chemical protection from predation, they feed

openly on flowers and vegetation during the day.

While most are harmless or beneficial, a few

species can reach pest proportions, a striking

example being the Spotted Maize Beetle Astylus

atromaculatus from southern South America. This

yellow and black spotted beetle is a good pollinator,

and at moderate densities may be useful to

agriculture. However, especially outside of its native

range, it can develop huge populations, at which

point the hungry beetles will eat flowers and damage

family

Melyridae

known species

6,000

distribution

Worldwide

habitat

Common in most habitats, from

semideserts to lakesides, even on

beaches on the strandline

size

1–10 mm

diet

Some are predators, others feed on flowers

as adults, and may be important pollinators.

Larvae are scavengers and predators in soil,

leaf litter, or dead wood

notes

The brightly colored New Guinean melyrid

genus Choresine is remarkable for producing

batrachotoxins, the same powerful cardio-

MELYRIDAE—Soft-Winged Flower Beetles