Zopherinae is a subfamily 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 ...

s, commonly known as ironclad beetles. Together with the subfamily Usechinae, they have been treated historically as a family, but have recently been joined by several additional taxa, making the

Zopheridae The Zopheridae family of beetles has grown considerably in recent years as the members of two other families have been included within its circumscription; these former families are the Monommatidae and the Colydiidae, which are now both incl ...

a much larger composite family, and the Zopherinae are now only a small component within it, consisting of seven genera in the tribe Zopherini and one, '' Phellopsis'' in its own tribe ( Phellopsini). These beetles are apparently

fungivore Fungivory or mycophagy is the process of organisms consuming fungi. Many different organisms have been recorded to gain their energy from consuming fungi, including birds, mammals, insects, plants, amoebas, gastropods, nematodes, bacteria and othe ...

s and associated with rotting wood, and as the common name implies, have one of the hardest of all

arthropod Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a Segmentation (biology), segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and Arth ...

exoskeleton An exoskeleton (from Greek ''éxō'' "outer" and ''skeletós'' "skeleton") is an external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to an internal skeleton (endoskeleton) in for example, a human. In usage, some of the ...

s; in some species, it is almost impossible to drive an insect pin through their bodies without using a small drill to make a hole first. When disturbed, ironclad beetles play dead. Some species in the genus ''

Zopherus ''Zopherus'' is a genus of beetles comprising 19 species. They live in the Americas and are adapted to wood-boring. Distribution Species of ''Zopherus'' only live in the Americas, where they are distributed from Venezuela to the southern Uni ...

'' in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

are decorated with

costume jewelry Costume or fashion jewelry includes a range of decorative items worn for personal adornment that are manufactured as less expensive ornamentation to complement a particular fashionable outfit or garmentBaker, Lillian. Fifty Years of Collectabl ...

glued to their bodies, and sold as living brooches, known as ''

ma'kech A living brooch, also known as a ma'kech, makech, and maquech, is a brooch made from a living beetle of the genus ''Zopherus'' (one of the three genera of ironclad beetle), particularly the species ''Zopherus chilensis ''Zopherus chilensis'', als ...

''.

Selected species

*Genus '' Phellopsis'' LeConte, 1862 :'' Phellopsis montana'' Casey, 1907 :'' Phellopsis obcordata'' (Kirby, 1837) :''

Phellopsis porcata ''Phellopsis porcata'' is a beetle of the Family Zopheridae. Its range includes parts of North America. Biology Both adults and larvae feed on fungi, including ''Piptoporus betulinus'' (Polyporales) on birch (''Betula papyrifera'', '' B. lent ...

'' :'' Phellopsis robustula'' Casey, 1907 *Genus ''

Nosoderma The genus ''Nosoderma'' includes 28 species of ironclad beetle Zopherinae is a subfamily of beetles, commonly known as ironclad beetles. Together with the subfamily Usechinae, they have been treated historically as a family, but have rece ...

'' Solier, 1841 :''Nosoderma aequale'' :''

Nosoderma diabolicum ''Phloeodes diabolicus'' (formerly ''Nosoderma diabolicum''), common name: diabolical ironclad beetle, is a beetle of the Family Zopheridae. It is found in deserts of western North America, where it lives on fungi growing under tree bark. It is f ...

'' (LeConte, 1851) :''Nosoderma exsculptum'' :''

Nosoderma guatemalense The genus ''Nosoderma'' includes 28 species of ironclad beetle Zopherinae is a subfamily of beetles, commonly known as ironclad beetles. Together with the subfamily Usechinae, they have been treated historically as a family, but have rece ...

'' :''Nosoderma inaequale'' :''

Nosoderma plicatum ''Nosoderma plicatum'' (formerly ''Phloeodes plicatus'') is a beetle of the Family Zopheridae The Zopheridae family of beetles has grown considerably in recent years as the members of two other families have been included within its circumsc ...

'' (LeConte, 1859) :''

Nosoderma sylvaticum ''Nosoderma sylvaticum'' is a beetle, belonging to the genus ''Nosoderma The genus ''Nosoderma'' includes 28 species of ironclad beetle Zopherinae is a subfamily of beetles, commonly known as ironclad beetles. Together with the subfamil ...

'' :''Nosoderma zunilense'' *Genus ''

'' Laporte, 1840 :''

Zopherus championi ''Zopherus championi'' is a species of ironclad beetle in the family Zopheridae The Zopheridae family of beetles has grown considerably in recent years as the members of two other families have been included within its circumscription; these ...

'' Triplehorn, 1972 :''

Zopherus chilensis ''Zopherus chilensis'', also commonly known as the ma'kech or jewelled bug, is a species of ironclad beetle in the family Zopheridae. Despite the name "''chilensis''", nearly all of the known specimens have been found from Mexico to Venezuela. ...

'' :''

Zopherus concolor ''Zopherus concolor'' is a species of ironclad beetle in the family Zopheridae The Zopheridae family of beetles has grown considerably in recent years as the members of two other families have been included within its circumscription; these ...

'' LeConte, 1851 :'' Zopherus elegans''

Horn Horn most often refers to: *Horn (acoustic), a conical or bell shaped aperture used to guide sound ** Horn (instrument), collective name for tube-shaped wind musical instruments *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various ...

, 1870 :'' Zopherus gracilis'' Horn, 1867 :'' Zopherus granicollis'' Horn, 1885 :'' Zopherus jansoni'' :'' Zopherus jourdani'' :'' Zopherus laevicollis'' :'' Zopherus nervosus'' :''

Zopherus nodulosus ''Zopherus nodulosus,'' is a species of ironclad beetle in the family Zopheridae. It is found in Central America and North America. The species name ''nodulosus'' refers to the bumps or nodes on the beetle's back. Subspecies ''Z. n. haldeman ...

'' Solier, 1841 :''

Zopherus opacus ''Zopherus'' is a genus of beetles comprising 19 species. They live in the Americas and are adapted to wood-boring. Distribution Species of ''Zopherus'' only live in the Americas, where they are distributed from Venezuela to the southern Uni ...

'' Horn, 1867 :''

Zopherus sanctaehelenae ''Zopherus sanctaehelenae'' is a species of ironclad beetle in the family Zopheridae The Zopheridae family of beetles has grown considerably in recent years as the members of two other families have been included within its circumscription; ...

'' (Blaisdell, 1931) :''

Zopherus tristis ''Zopherus tristis'' is a species of ironclad beetle in the family Zopheridae The Zopheridae family of beetles has grown considerably in recent years as the members of two other families have been included within its circumscription; these f ...

'' LeConte, 1851 :''

Zopherus uteanus ''Zopherus uteanus'' is a species of ironclad beetle in the family Zopheridae The Zopheridae family of beetles has grown considerably in recent years as the members of two other families have been included within its circumscription; these f ...

'' (Casey, 1907) :''

Zopherus xestus ''Zopherus xestus'' is a species of ironclad beetle in the family Zopheridae The Zopheridae family of beetles has grown considerably in recent years as the members of two other families have been included within its circumscription; these fo ...

'' Triplehorn, 1972

References

Zopheridae {{Zopheridae-stub