Violet click beetle
Violet click beetle | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Class: | Insecta |
Order: | Coleoptera |
Family: | Elateridae |
Genus: | Gambrinus |
Species: | G. violaceus
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Binomial name | |
Gambrinus violaceus (Müller, 1821)
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The violet click beetle (Gambrinus violaceus, formerly Limoniscus violaceus[2]) is a black beetle, 12 mm (0.5 in) long, with a faint blue/violet reflection. It gets its name from the family habit of springing upwards with an audible click if it falls on its back. It occurs in Europe.[1]
Description
The adult beetle is long and slender, about 12 mm (0.5 in) long, with many small puncture marks on its
Ecology
This
Conservation status
The International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed the conservation status of the beetle as Endangered.[1]
The beetle is listed in Annex II of the EC Habitats Directive and Schedule 5 of the UK's Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. It is also listed as Endangered in the GB Red List. It is to be found in only a few locations in Europe, including three sites in Britain. These are Windsor Forest (where it was first found in 1937), Bredon Hill in Worcestershire (1989),[5] and Dixton Wood SSSI in Gloucestershire (1998).[6] The violet click beetle is one of the species that the Back from the Brink project aims to save from extinction in Britain.[7]
References
- ^ .
- ^ F.E. Etzler. 2019. Generic reclassification of Limonius Eschscholtz, 1829 (Elateridae: Dendrometrinae) sensu Candèze 1860 of the world. Zootaxa 4863:301-335.
- ^ "Violet click beetle". Woodland Trust. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
- ^ "Violet click beetle Limoniscus violaceus". JNCC. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
- ^ Natural England SSSI information on the citation for Bredon Hill SSSI
- ^ Natural England SSSI information on the citation for Dixton Wood SSSI which provides information on the three sites in Britain
- ^ "Back from the Brink". Back from the Brink. Retrieved 30 July 2018.