''Zopherus nodulosus'', is a species of ironclad beetle in the family

Zopheridae Zopheridae is a family of beetles belonging to Tenebrionoidea. It has grown considerably in recent years as the members of two other families are now included (Monommatidae and Colydiidae), as subfamilies or (in the former case) even as tribe ( ...

. It is found in Central America and North America. The species name ''nodulosus'' refers to the bumps or nodes on the beetle's back.

Subspecies

Zopherus nodulosus haldemani variation sjh

''Z. n. haldemani''

Horn Horn may refer to: Common uses * Horn (acoustic), a tapered sound guide ** Horn antenna ** Horn loudspeaker ** Vehicle horn ** Train horn *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various animals * Horn (instrument), a family ...

, 1870, common names Haldeman's ironclad beetle or Texas ironclad beetle, is sometimes treated as a separate species. It can grow between 1.5 and 2 centimetres in length. The body is a blotchy black-and-white pattern, and the legs are fully black. The subspecies name, ''haldemani'', references the Haldeman brothers ( Samuel Haldeman and Horace Haldeman), the former a

naturalist Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

and

philologist Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also defined as the study of ...

, the latter a soldier and one of the first people to concentrate on insect collection in Texas. They are thought to feed on

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a hybrid colony (biology), colony of algae or cyanobacteria living symbiotically among hypha, filaments of multiple fungus species, along with yeasts and bacteria embedded in the cortex or "skin", in a mutualism (biology), m ...

and dead plant material. Females have been observed laying eggs on

American elm ''Ulmus americana'', generally known as the American elm or, less commonly, as the white elm or water elm, is a species of elm native to eastern North America. The trees can live for several hundred years. It is a very hardy species that can ...

s, and larvae and pupae have been found in pecan wood, which "apparently serves as the developmental site for this species". They are found in

East East is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fact that ea ...

and

Central Texas Central Texas is a region in the U.S. state of Texas roughly bordered on the west by San Saba, to the southeast by Bryan- College Station, the south by San Marcos and to the north by Hillsboro. Central Texas overlaps with and includes part ...

''Z. n. nodulosus''

''Z. n. nodulosus'' can grow between 1.4 and 2.8 centimetres in length, and 0.5 to 1.1 cm in width.A Review of the Genus Zopherus of the World (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)
by Triplehorn, Charles File:Texas Ironclad Beetle (Zopheridae, Zopherus nodulosus haldemani) (26469861181).jpg, alt=, ''Z. n. haldemani'' File:Zopherus nodulosus nodulosus sjh.jpg, alt=, ''Z. n. nodulosus''

References

Tenebrionoidea Articles created by Qbugbot Beetles described in 1841 Zopheridae Beetles of Central America Beetles of North America {{zopheridae-stub