Stilbus testaceus

Stilbus testaceus is a species of beetles commonly called the shining flower beetles belonging to the family Phalacridae.^[1]

Stilbus
Stilbus testaceus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Coleoptera
Family:	Phalacridae
Subfamily:	Phalacrinae
Genus:	Stilbus
Species:	S. testaceus
Binomial name
Stilbus testaceus (Panzer, 1797)
Synonyms
Anisotoma testaceus Panzer, 1797

Distribution

This rather common species is present in most of Europe and in the Afrotropical realm.^[2][3]

Habitat

Stilbus testaceus feeding on a flower of Dittrichia viscosa

These beetles can be found in meadows and forest edges, on flowers, on dry grass and hay, in moss and dead leaves.^[4]

Description

Stilbus testaceus can reach a length of 1.8–2.3 millimetres (0.071–0.091 in).^[5] These tiny beetles have a spherical-oval brownish body, with a yellowish- reddish apex of the elitra. Head and pronotum are dark. The hind angles of the pronotum are sharp, right-angled.^[6]

Biology

Adults can be found from May to October on flowering grasses, while in Winter they rest under fallen leaves and among the mosses.^[7]