''Glaresis'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

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 ...

s, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family

Scarabaeidae The family Scarabaeidae, as currently defined, consists of over 30,000 species of beetles worldwide; they are often called scarabs or scarab beetles. The classification of this family has undergone significant change in recent years. Several sub ...

. Although its members occur in arid and sandy areas worldwide (except Australia), only the nocturnal adults have ever been collected (typically at lights), and both the larvae and biology of ''Glaresis'' are as yet unknown. Due to their narrow habitat associations, a great number of these species occur in extremely limited geographic areas, and are accordingly imperiled by

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

. These beetles are small, 2.5–6 mm long, and have the stocky appearance typical of

fossorial A fossorial () animal is one adapted to digging which lives primarily, but not solely, underground. Some examples are badgers, naked mole-rats, clams, meerkats, and mole salamanders, as well as many beetles, wasps, and bees. Prehistoric eviden ...

scarabs, with short, heavy, spurred legs. Color ranges from tan to dark brown, and the back is covered with short

setae In biology, setae (singular seta ; from the Latin word for "bristle") are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms. Animal setae Protostomes Annelid setae are stiff bristles present on the body. Th ...

. Efforts to raise glaresids in the laboratory were undertaken in the 1980s by C. H. Scholtz and others, but were unsuccessful. ''Glaresis'' was originally classified with

Trogidae Trogidae, sometimes called hide beetles, is a family of beetles with a distinctive warty or bumpy appearance. Found worldwide, the family includes about 300 species contained in four or five genera. Trogids range in length from 2 to 20 mm. Thei ...

(originally a subfamily within Scarabaeidae), and has many characteristics of "primitive" scarabaeoids, but no affinities to any of the other primitive groups; recent work suggests that they may in fact belong in Trogidae. Scholtz argued that ''Glaresis'' is the most primitive type of scarabaeoid, but more recent research indicates that the Pleocomidae hold this position. The species in North, Central, and South America have been revised by Robert Gordon and Guy Hanley, January 2014, in the journal ''Insecta Mundi''.

Species

* ''

Glaresis alfierii ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * '' Glaresis arabica'' * '' Glaresis arenata'' * '' Glaresis australis'' * ''

Glaresis bajaensis ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis bautista ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * '' Glaresis beckeri'' * '' Glaresis caenulenta'' * ''

Glaresis california ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis canadensis ''Glaresis canadensis'' is a species of enigmatic scarab beetle ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the fam ...

'' * ''

Glaresis carthagensis ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis cartwrighti ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis ceballosi ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis celiae ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis clypeata ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis confusa ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis contrerasi ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis costaricensis ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * '' Glaresis costata'' * '' Glaresis dakotensis'' * '' Glaresis dentata'' * '' Glaresis desperata'' * '' Glaresis donaldi'' * '' Glaresis ecostata'' * ''

Glaresis exasperata ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * '' Glaresis falli'' * '' Glaresis foveolata'' * '' Glaresis franzi'' * '' Glaresis freyi'' * '' Glaresis fritzi'' * '' Glaresis frustrata'' * '' Glaresis gineri'' * '' Glaresis gordoni'' * '' Glaresis handlirschi'' * '' Glaresis hespericula'' * '' Glaresis hispana'' * ''

Glaresis holmi ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * '' Glaresis holzschuhi'' * '' Glaresis howdeni'' * '' Glaresis imitator'' * '' Glaresis impressicollis'' * '' Glaresis inducta'' * '' Glaresis kocheri'' * '' Glaresis koenigsbaueri'' * ''

Glaresis limbata ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * '' Glaresis lomii'' * '' Glaresis longisternum'' * ''

Glaresis mandibularis ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * ''

Glaresis maroccana ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

'' * '' Glaresis mauritanica'' * '' Glaresis medialis'' * '' Glaresis mendica'' * '' Glaresis methneri'' * '' Glaresis minuta'' * '' Glaresis mondacai'' * '' Glaresis montenegro'' * '' Glaresis namibensis'' * '' Glaresis obscura'' * '' Glaresis ordosensis'' * '' Glaresis orientalis'' * '' Glaresis oxiana'' * '' Glaresis paramendica'' * '' Glaresis pardoalcaidei'' * '' Glaresis pardoi'' * '' Glaresis penrithae'' * '' Glaresis phoenicis'' * '' Glaresis porrecta'' * '' Glaresis quedenfeldti'' * '' Glaresis rufa'' * '' Glaresis smithi'' * '' Glaresis subulosa'' * '' Glaresis texana'' * '' Glaresis thiniensis'' * '' Glaresis tripolitana'' * '' Glaresis tumida'' * '' Glaresis villiersi'' * '' Glaresis walzlae'' * '' Glaresis warneri'' * '' Glaresis yanegai'' * '' Glaresis zacateca'' * '' Glaresis zarudniana'' * ''

Glaresis zvirgzdinsi ''Glaresis'' is a genus of beetles, sometimes called "Enigmatic scarab beetles", in its own family, the Glaresidae. It is closely related to, and was formerly included in, the family Scarabaeidae. Although its members occur in arid and sandy area ...

Fossil species

* †''Glaresis burmitica'' Cai and Huang 2018

Burmese amber Burmese amber, also known as Burmite or Kachin amber, is amber from the Hukawng Valley in northern Myanmar. The amber is dated to around 100 million years ago, during the latest Albian to earliest Cenomanian ages of the mid-Cretaceous period. The ...

, Myanmar,

Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the ICS' geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or the lowest stage of the Upper Cretaceous Series. An age is a unit of geochronology; it is a unit of time; the stage is a unit in the s ...

* †''Glaresis orthochilus'' Bai et al. 2010

Yixian Formation The Yixian Formation (; formerly transcribed as Yihsien Formation) is a geological formation in Jinzhou, Liaoning, People's Republic of China, that spans the late Barremian and early Aptian stages of the Early Cretaceous. It is known for its ex ...

, China,

Aptian The Aptian is an age in the geologic timescale or a stage in the stratigraphic column. It is a subdivision of the Early or Lower Cretaceous Epoch or Series and encompasses the time from 121.4 ± 1.0 Ma to 113.0 ± 1.0 Ma (million years ago), a ...

* †''Glaresis tridentata'' Bai et al. 2014M. Bai, R. G. Beutel, and D. Ren. 2014
Description of a new species of Glaresidae (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea) from the Jehol Biota of China with a geometric morphometric evaluation.
''Arthropod Systematics & Phylogeny'' 72:223-236 Yixian Formation, China, Aptian ''"Glaresis" cretacea'' Nikolajev 2007 from the Aptian aged

Zaza Formation The Zaza Formation is a geological formation located in Buryatia (Russia). It dates to the Lower Cretaceous period. It is Aptian in age and consists of sandstones, siltstones, marls and bituminous shales, deposited in a stratified lake. It is s ...

in Russia is considered questionable, with Cai and Huang 2018 considering it to have no diagnostic characters of the family.

References

Mary Liz Jameson Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

, "Glaresidae", in

Ross H. Arnett, Jr. Ross Harold Arnett Jr. (April 13, 1919 – July 16, 1999) was an American entomologist noted for his studies of beetles, and as founder of the ''Coleopterist's Bulletin''. Born in Medina, New York, he was a star student at Cornell University, wher ...

and Michael C. Thomas, ''American Beetles'' (

CRC Press The CRC Press, LLC is an American publishing group that specializes in producing technical books. Many of their books relate to engineering, science and mathematics. Their scope also includes books on business, forensics and information tec ...

, 2001), vol. 2

External links

* Browne et al.
''Glaresis''
from th
Tree of Life
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q140720, from2=Q14868999 Scarabaeoidea genera Scarabaeiformia