Elytron

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the elytra of annelids, see Elytron (annelid anatomy). For the academic journal, see Elytron (journal).
The elytra of this cockchafer beetle are readily distinguished from the transparent hindwings.

An elytron (

forewing of beetles (Coleoptera), though a few of the true bugs (Hemiptera) such as the family Schizopteridae are extremely similar; in true bugs, the forewings are called hemelytra (sometimes alternatively spelled as "hemielytra"), and in most species only the basal half is thickened while the apex is membranous, but when they are entirely thickened the condition is referred to as "coleopteroid".[5] An elytron is sometimes also referred to as a shard.[6]

Hemelytra in Schizopteridae; figures B and C are considered "coleopteroid" as they lack membrane
Ripiphorus fasciatus-complex, female

Description

The elytra primarily serve as protective wing-cases for the

Cetoniinae; [7]
).

In a number of groups, the elytra are reduced to various degrees, (e.g., the beetle families

Staphylinidae and Ripiphoridae), or secondarily lost altogether, as in various Elateroidea
lineages with wingless females.

In some flightless groups, the elytra are present but fused together, and the hindwings are absent (e.g., some

scarab beetles, and weevils
).

References

  1. ^ a b "elytron". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary.
  2. ISBN 9781486301386
  3. ^ Augustus Radcliffe Grote (1909), Canadian Entomologist, vol. 41, Entomological Society of Canada
  4. Perseus Project
    .
  5. doi:10.1016/j.isci.2020.101280
  6. ^ "Definition of SHARD". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2022-03-26.
  7. PMID 27165937
    .
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