''Biphyllus lunatus'' is a species of

beetle Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

in the family

Biphyllidae Biphyllidae, or false skin beetles, are a family of beetles, in the superfamily Cleroidea. The have a cosmopolitan distribution (excluding New Zealand). About 195 species are known. They live under the bark of dead trees and in leaf litter, and a ...

. The larvae feed on the fungus ''

Daldinia concentrica The inedible fungus ''Daldinia concentrica'' is known by several common names, including King Alfred's cake, cramp balls, and coal fungus. As with other fungi the light spores are distributed globally and the fungi develop wherever conditions ar ...

''. The species' presence is used as an indicator for evaluating the ecological continuity of woodlands. The humeral mark on the back of adults is a distinguishing feature.

Description

Dark brown to black, each elytron with a transverse, angled patch of pale pubescens near the middle and often a sub-apical patch. Pubescence more evenly recumbent throughout. Antennal club 2-segmented. Some specimens have small patches of pale pubescence to the pronotum and a pale humeral mark. Adults are typically 3.0-3.3mm long.

Range

''Biphyllus lunatus'' is a very local and generally rare species in southern and central Europe and is considered to be threatened in many countries; it is widespread across North West Africa and extends east into southern Siberia and north into the UK and southern Fennoscandia. In the UK it is locally common throughout England and Wales though less so in the north and there are a very few records from southern Scotland.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2210931 Biphyllidae Beetles described in 1792