Clambidae is a family of

beetle Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 40 ...

s. They are known commonly as the minute beetlesMajka, C. G., & Langor, D. (2009)
Clambidae (Coleoptera) of Atlantic Canada.
''Journal of the Acadian Entomological Society'' 5(7), 32-40. or the fringe-winged beetles.Clambidae.
Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). They are found worldwide on every continent except

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

. These are tiny beetles with bodies measuring 0.7 to 2mm in length. They are flattened to convex in shape and some can roll into a ball. Some are hairless, while some are quite hairy or scaly.Lawrence, J.F., et al. 2000 onwards
Clambidae.
Elateriformia (Coleoptera): descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval for families and subfamilies. Version 9 October 2005. The margins of the wings are lined with long hairs. Clambids commonly feed on

fungi A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one ...

. The family is divided into 5

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

and about 70 described species. The largest and most widespread genus is '' Clambus'', which occurs around the world. The genus '' Sphaerothorax'' is found in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

.Endrödy-Younga, S. (1990)
Clambidae of New Zealand (Coleoptera: Eucinetoidea).
''New Zealand Journal of Zoology'' 17(1), 119-36. '' Acalyptomerus'' is circumtropical.Endrödy-Younga, S. (1998)
''Acalyptomerus'' Crowson: the circumtropical genus of the family Clambidae (Coleoptera: Clambidae).
''Koleopterologische Rundschau'' 68, 199-203. The latter two genera have undergone long term morphological stasis, with fossils identifiable to both genera being known from the 99 million year old

Burmese amber Burmese amber, also known as Burmite or Kachin amber, is amber from the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar. The amber is dated to around 100 million years ago, during the latest Albian to earliest Cenomanian ages of the mid-Cretaceous period. Th ...

. The oldest records of the group are the extinct genera '' Eoclambus'' and '' Ptisma'' from the Early Cretaceous (

Barremian The Barremian is an age in the geologic timescale (or a chronostratigraphic stage) between 125.77 Ma (million years ago) and 121.4 ± 1.0 Ma (Historically, this stage was placed at 129.4 million to approximately 125 million years ago) It is a ...

) aged Lebanese amber. Genera: *'' Acalyptomerus'' *'' Calyptomerus'' *'' Clambus'' *'' Loricaster'' *'' Sphaerothorax''

References

{{Authority control Scirtoidea Beetle families