Clambidae 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 other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...
s. They are known commonly as the minute beetles
[Majka, C. G., & Langor, D. (2009)]
Clambidae (Coleoptera) of Atlantic Canada.
''Journal of the Acadian Entomological Society'' 5(7), 32-40. or the fringe-winged beetles.
[Clambidae.]
Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS). They are found worldwide on every continent except
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...
.
[
These are tiny beetles with bodies measuring 0.7 to 2mm in length. They are flattened to convex in shape and some can roll into a ball. Some are hairless, while some are quite hairy or scaly.][Lawrence, J.F., et al. 2000 onwards]
Clambidae.
Elateriformia (Coleoptera): descriptions, illustrations, identification, and information retrieval for families and subfamilies. Version 9 October 2005. The margins of the wings are lined with long hairs.[
Clambids commonly feed on ]fungi
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...
.[
The family is divided into 5 genera and about 70 described species.][ The largest and most widespread genus is '' Clambus'', which occurs around the world. The genus '' Sphaerothorax'' is found in Australia and ]New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
.[Endrödy-Younga, S. (1990)]
Clambidae of New Zealand (Coleoptera: Eucinetoidea).
''New Zealand Journal of Zoology'' 17(1), 119-36. '' Acalyptomerus'' is circumtropical.[Endrödy-Younga, S. (1998)]
''Acalyptomerus'' Crowson: the circumtropical genus of the family Clambidae (Coleoptera: Clambidae).
''Koleopterologische Rundschau'' 68, 199-203. The latter two genera have undergone long term morphological stasis, with fossils identifiable to both genera being known from the 99 million year old 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 ...
. The oldest records of the group are the extinct genera '' Eoclambus'' and '' Ptisma'' from the Early Cretaceous (Barremian
The Barremian is an age in the geologic timescale (or a chronostratigraphic stage) between 129.4 ± 1.5 Ma (million years ago) and 121.4 ± 1.0 Ma). It is a subdivision of the Early Cretaceous Epoch (or Lower Cretaceous Series). It is precede ...
) aged Lebanese amber
Lebanese amber is fossilized resin found in Lebanon and southwest Syria. It dates back approximately 130-125 million years to the Barremian of the Early Cretaceous. It formed on what was then the northern coast of Gondwana, believed to be a tropi ...
.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q846457
Scirtoidea
Beetle families