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AGRYPNINE CLICK BEETLES

ELATERIDAE: AGRYPNINAE

T

he subfamily Agrypninae is diverse and

includes the largest of all click beetles. The

Giant Acacia Click Beetle Tetralobus flabellicornis has

a larva that develops inside termite mounds in

tropical Africa, while the brown adult feeds on the

young leaves of acacia trees, and can be 3 in (8 cm)

long. In some parts of Central Africa, adults are

collected for human consumption.

Another agrypnie click beetle that develops in

termite mounds is Pyrearinus termitilluminans, one of

the bioluminescent species, with a name meaning

“termite illuminator.” Adults and larvae glow with

a bright greenish radiance, and a termite mound by

night, studded with dozens of glowing larvae, is one

of the wonders of the Brazilian Cerrado savanna

habitat. The larvae are, in fact, predators, feeding

ELATERIDAE: AGRYPNINAE

subfamily

Agrypninae

known species

2,300

distribution

Worldwide except Antarctica

habitat

Plains, savannas, and grasslands to tropical

forests. Many species develop in dead

wood, soil, or, in some cases, termite

mounds

size

4–80 mm

diet

Larvae almost all predators, with large jaws,

but a few eat roots. Adults in most cases feed

on leaves or other vegetation, or scavenge on

vegetable- and animal-based organic matter

notes

One of the strangest Agrypninae is the

genus Drilus, found in the Palearctic region,

and until recently placed in a separate