''Panagaeus cruxmajor'', the crucifix ground beetle, is a rare

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

ground beetle Ground beetles are a large, cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan family (biology), family of beetles, the Carabidae, with more than 40,000 species worldwide, around 2,000 of which are found in North America and 2,700 in Europe. As of 2015, it i ...

. In

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

it occurs in a few places only. ''

Panagaeus bipustulatus ''Panagaeus bipustulatus'' is a species of ground beetle native to Europe and the Near East. In Europe, it is found in Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, mainland Denmark, Estonia, Finland, mainland F ...

'' is a commoner relative, looking very much alike except for being smaller. The crucifix ground beetle is sometimes included in ''P. bipustulatus'', but most modern authors consider it distinct. The largely black and rather bristly beetle is in length, with large red spots on its wing cases which give the appearance of a red background behind a black cross. It shelters under pieces of wood during the day, and is a nocturnal predatory species thought to mainly feed on semi-aquatic snails. It was greatly treasured by 19th century collectors, and

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended fr ...

recounted an incident when he was an undergraduate at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

around 1828. He had already collected two

s when he "saw a sacred Panagæus crux major". He tried putting one of the other beetles in his mouth to free his hand, but it ejected acrid fluid down his throat, causing him to spit it out and lose all three.

References

*
Letter 1009 — C. R. Darwin to Leonard Jenyns, 17 Oct (1846)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Panagaeus Cruxmajor Panagaeinae Beetles of Europe Beetles described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus