''Lampyris'' 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 ...
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 in the
Lampyridae
The Lampyridae are a family (biology), family of Elateroidea, elateroid beetles with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are bioluminescence, light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, ...
. In most of western
Eurasia
Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago a ...
, they are the predominant members of this family and includes the European
common glow-worm, which is the
type species
In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen ...
. They produce a continuous glow;
[Stanger-Hall, Kathrin F.; Lloyd, James E. & Hillis, David M. (2007): Phylogeny of North American fireflies (Coleoptera: Lampyridae): Implications for the evolution of light signals. '' Mol. Phylogenet. Evol.'' 45(1): 33-49. ]
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the
larva
A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle.
The ...
e and
larviform female Larviform female is a biological phenomenon occurring in some insect species, where the females in the adult stage of metamorphosis resemble the larvae to various degrees, while the male appears more morphologically adult (as imagoes). The resemblan ...
s are among those organisms commonly called "
glowworm
Glowworm or glow-worm is the common name for various groups of insect larvae and adult larviform females that glow through bioluminescence. They include the European common glow-worm and other members of the Lampyridae, but bioluminescence also o ...
s".
This genus is rather close to ''
Pleotomus'' and its relatives. These were formerly separated as
tribe
The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English language, English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in p ...
Pleotomini, but appear to be a specialized offshoot of the
Lampyrini
The Lampyrini are a tribe of fireflies in the large subfamily Lampyrinae. The lineage formerly separated as Pleotomini seems to be a specialized offshoot of the Lampyrini not too distant from the type genus ''Lampyris'' and is therefore included ...
.
Species
''BioLib'' includes the following species:
BioLib.cz: genus
''Lampyris'' Geoffroy, 1762 (retrieved 25 June 2020)
/ref>
* '' Lampyris algerica'' Ancey, 1869
* '' Lampyris ambigena'' Jacquelin du Val, 1860
* '' Lampyris angustula'' Fairmaire, 1895
* '' Lampyris brutia'' Costa, 1882
* '' Lampyris fuscata'' Geisthardt, 1987
* '' Lampyris germariensis'' Jacquelin du Val, 1860
* '' Lampyris hellenica'' Geisthardt, 1983
* '' Lampyris iberica'' Geisthardt, Figueira, Day & De Cock, 2008
* '' Lampyris lareynii'' Jacquelin du Val, 1859
* '' Lampyris monticola'' Geisthardt, 2000
* ''Lampyris noctiluca
''Lampyris noctiluca'', the common glow-worm of Europe (see also "glowworm"), is the type species of beetle in the genus ''Lampyris'' and the family Lampyridae.
''Lampyris noctiluca'' presents a conspicuous sexual dimorphism. The males are winge ...
'' (Linnaeus, 1767) - type species (as ''Cantharis
''Cantharis'' is a large genus of soldier beetles in the family Cantharidae with narrow and soft elytra.
The poisonous Spanish fly is superficially similar and is associated with the scientific name ''Cantharis vesicatoria''. It is also sometime ...
noctiluca'' L. 1767)
* '' Lampyris orientalis'' Faldermann, 1835
* '' Lampyris pallida'' Geisthardt, 1987
* '' Lampyris pseudozenkeri'' Geisthardt, 1999
* '' Lampyris raymondi'' Mulsant & Rey, 1859
* '' Lampyris sardiniae'' Geisthardt, 1987
* '' Lampyris zenkeri'' Germar, 1817
References
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1316894
Lampyridae genera
Bioluminescent insects