and unfurl their antennae, reading the wind

to find out where the nearest females are.

If humans could imitate the scent-detecting

apparatus or these beetles, we could design

more effective equipment to detect minute

quantities of explosives or toxins

above | Dascillus davidsoni (Dascillidae)

A fully winged male from western North

America. In contrast, the female has full

elytra but shortened flight wings.

below | Sandalus niger (Rhipiceridae) A

male of the Cedar Beetle, a widespread

cicada parasite in eastern USA and

southeast Canada.

often occur in places where orchids do not.

Some Dascillidae, like the North American

Anorus and north African Emmita, live in desert and

semidesert environments. Flightless females remain

in the larval burrow and produce pheromones to

attract flying males. In some genera, females are

still unknown, but these are assumed to be flightless

and subterranean.