''Byrrhus pilula '' is a
Holarctic species of
beetle in the family
Byrrhidae
Byrrhidae, the pill beetles, is a family 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 othe ...
the pill beetles. It was described by
Carl Linnaeus in 1758.
Description
The body is short and stout and brown with rows of dark and light brown markings on the elytra. Body length is 6.7 to 9.3 mm.
Biology
Pill beetles can retract all their appendages into ventral body grooves-so feigning death and are then said to
resemble or mimic a rabbit dropping or seed. Both larvae and adults feed on moss, algae and liverworts. Main habitats include moorland, heathland and sandy shorelines. They are found beneath logs and stones and at plant roots on damp, sandy or stony soils. They form part of the diet of the
Red Kite in Wales
[P. E. Davis & J. E. Davis (1981) The food of the Red Kite in Wales, ''Bird Study'', 28:1, 33-40, DOI: 10.1080/0006365810947669]
online
/ref> and have been found in Kestrel and Little Owl
The little owl (''Athene noctua''), also known as the owl of Athena or owl of Minerva, is a bird that inhabits much of the temperate and warmer parts of Europe, the Palearctic east to Korea, and North Africa. It was introduced into Britain at ...
pellets.
Distribution
In the Palearctic
The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa.
The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Sibe ...
from Ireland and Spain to Japan. In North America they are found in the Northern Territory of Canada.
Byrrhus pilula, North Wales, May 2008 (22885921373).jpg , Ventral view showing retracted legs
Byrrhus pilula.jpg, Habitus Netherlands
References
Byrrhidae
Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus
Beetles described in 1758
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