Cleroidea is a small

superfamily SUPERFAMILY is a database and search platform of structural and functional annotation for all proteins and genomes. It classifies amino acid sequences into known structural domains, especially into SCOP superfamilies. Domains are functional, str ...

of beetles containing over 10,000 species. Most of the members of the group are somewhat slender, often with fairly soft, flexible elytra, and typically hairy or scaly.

Description

Cleroidea is defined by the following features: adult and larva with mandibular mola absent, larva with basal mandibular process (lacinia mobilis) present), and mala with a pedunculate seta present. Some cleroids, especially in

Cleridae Cleridae are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea. They are commonly known as checkered beetles. The family Cleridae has a worldwide distribution, and a variety of habitats and feeding preferences. Cleridae have many niches and feed ...

and the melyrid subfamily Malachiinae, have bright aposematic colouration to deter predators. They mimic the appearances of other arthropods that are unpalatable to predators, such as various beetles ( blister beetles,

leaf beetles The insects of the beetle family Chrysomelidae are commonly known as leaf beetles, and include over 37,000 (and probably at least 50,000) species in more than 2,500 genera, making up one of the largest and most commonly encountered of all beetle ...

net-winged beetles The Lycidae are a family in the beetle order Coleoptera, members of which are commonly called net-winged beetles. These beetles are cosmopolitan, being found in Nearctic, Palearctic, Neotropical, Afrotropical, Oriental, and Australian ecoregion ...

), stinging Hymenoptera ( ants and velvet ants), zygaenid moths and tachinid flies. There is variation in the degree of sclerotisation within Cleroidea. Some are hard-bodied beetles with fully sclerotised elytra that match the shape of the abdomen (

Trogossitidae Trogossitidae, also known as bark-gnawing beetles, are a small family in the superfamily Cleroidea. Many taxa formerly within this family have been removed (as of 2019) to other families, such as Lophocateridae, Peltidae, Protopeltidae, Rentoniid ...

, Lophocateridae, Peltidae). The melyrid lineage (a group including Melyridae and other families) and the two small families Phloiophilidae and

Acanthocnemidae ''Acanthocnemus nigricans'' is a species of cleroid beetle, the only species in the genus ''Acanthocnemus'' and the family Acanthocnemidae. Originally native to Australia, the species has spread in modern times to numerous parts of the world, in ...

are highly soft-bodied. The Cleridae are intermediately soft-bodied.

Biology

Cleroids can be divided into three main groups based on what they feed on: * Cleridae and most Trogossitinae (Trogossitidae) are predatory and their adults are usually diurnal. * The melyrid lineage are

pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametophyt ...

- or

nectar Nectar is a sugar-rich liquid produced by plants in glands called nectaries or nectarines, either within the flowers with which it attracts pollinating animals, or by extrafloral nectaries, which provide a nutrient source to animal mutualists ...

-feeders, and also have diurnal adults. * Much of the remaining Trogossitidae and many smaller families are fungus-feeders. Their adults are more

cryptic Cryptic may refer to: In science: * Cryptic species complex, a group of species that are very difficult to distinguish from one another * Crypsis, the ability of animals to blend in to avoid observation * Cryptic era, earliest period of the Earth ...

and/or

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

than the previous two groups, occurring under bark, in rotting wood or in fruiting bodies of fungi. Other lifestyles also occur in the superfamily. Phycosecidae scavenge dead animals on bare seashore, while ''Acanthocnemus nigricans'' (the sole species of Acanthocnemidae) is attracted to recently burnt wood.

Taxonomy

Families included are: *

Crowson, 1964 * Biphyllidae LeConte, 1861 * †

Boleopsidae ''Boleopsis'' is an extinct genus of beetles from the Eocene aged Oise amber Oise ( ; ; pcd, Oése) is a department in the north of France. It is named after the river Oise. Inhabitants of the department are called ''Oisiens'' () or ''Isari ...

Kirejtshuk & Nel, 2013 * Byturidae Gistel, 1848 *

Chaetosomatidae Chaetosomatidae is a small family of beetles, in the superfamily Cleroidea Cleroidea is a small superfamily of beetles containing over 10,000 species. Most of the members of the group are somewhat slender, often with fairly soft, flexible elyt ...

Crowson, 1952 (incl.

Metaxinidae ''Metaxina'' is the only genus in the beetle family Metaxinidae. Its only species is ''Metaxina ornata''. It endemic to the South island of New Zealand, where it is associated with sooty mold growing on '' Nothofagus'' trees. Both the larvae and ...

) *

Latreille, 1802 (

checkered beetle Cleridae are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea. They are commonly known as checkered beetles. The family Cleridae has a worldwide distribution, and a variety of habitats and feeding preferences. Cleridae have many niches and f ...

s) * Lophocateridae Crowson, 1964 *

Mauroniscidae Mauroniscidae is a family of cleroid beetles, formerly included in the family Melyridae. There are presently five or six genera and roughly 30 described species in Mauroniscidae, all of which are native to the Americas. Almost nothing is known a ...

Majer, 1995 * Melyridae Leach, 1815 (

soft-winged flower beetle Melyridae (common name: soft-winged flower beetles) are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea. Description Most are elongate-oval, soft-bodied beetles 10 mm long or less. Many are brightly patterned in black and brown, yellow, ...

s) (including the former Attalomimidae, Malachiidae and

Dasytidae Dasytinae is a subfamily of soft-wing flower beetles, beetles of the family Melyridae, historically sometimes treated as a separate family, "Dasytidae". Description and distribution Dasytinae are typically small (<8 mm) and parallel-sided ...

) * Peltidae Latreille, 1806 * Phloiophilidae Kiesenwetter, 1863 * Phycosecidae Crowson, 1952 *

Prionoceridae Prionoceridae is a small family of beetles, in the suborder Polyphaga. They form a group within the cleroid beetles and were formerly treated as a subfamily (Prionocerinae) within the family Melyridae. Very little is known of their life history ...

Lacordaire, 1857 *

Protopeltidae ''Protopeltis'' is a genus of beetles. It contains two species native to New Zealand. It was formerly considered a member of Trogossitidae, but is currently placed as the only member of the family Protopeltidae within the Cleroidea. The larvae h ...

Crowson, 1966 *

Rentoniidae Rentoniidae is a family of beetles belonging to Cleroidea. The species were originally included in the family Trogossitidae. They are around 1–2 mm in length, with spherical bodies. Members of the family are native to the Southern Hemisphe ...

Crowson, 1966 *

Rhadalidae Rhadalidae are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea, formerly treated as a subfamily within the family Melyridae. The adults are predators or feed on pollen, while the larvae are probably carnivorous. Distribution Worldwide, except ...

LeConte, 1861 (incl. Gietellidae) * Thanerocleridae Chapin, 1924 *

Thymalidae Thymalidae is a family of beetles in Cleroidea. They were formerly included in Trogossitidae. Members of the subfamily Decamerinae are found in Central and South America, and are associated with flowers, while '' Thymalus'', the only member of th ...

Léveillé, 1888 *

Latreille, 1802 (

bark-gnawing beetle Trogossitidae, also known as bark-gnawing beetles, are a small family in the superfamily Cleroidea. Many taxa formerly within this family have been removed (as of 2019) to other families, such as Lophocateridae, Peltidae, Protopeltidae, Rentoniid ...

s) The melyrid lineage consists of Phycosecidae, Rhadalidae, Mauroniscidae, Prionoceridae and Melyridae. Most species belong to the families Cleridae and Melyridae, followed by Trogossitidae.

Extinct genera

* '' Juraniscus'' Kolibáč and Huang, 2019 - found in

Daohugou The Haifanggou Formation (), also known as the Jiulongshan Formation (), is a fossil-bearing rock deposit located near Daohugou () village of Ningcheng County, in Inner Mongolia, northeastern China. The formation consists of coarse conglomerates ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Middle Jurassic The Middle Jurassic is the second epoch of the Jurassic Period. It lasted from about 174.1 to 163.5 million years ago. Fossils of land-dwelling animals, such as dinosaurs, from the Middle Jurassic are relatively rare, but geological formations co ...

deposit, considered part of the melyrid lineage

References

External links

Cleroidea
from th
Tree of Life

Diagnostic photos and information. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cleroidea Beetle superfamilies