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Lymexylonidae (timberworm beetles) |
Elateridae ![]() |
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The timberworm beetles (Lymexylonidae) are a small family comprising 70 species worldwide, thereof only two recorded in Germany. They are medium-sized, of elongated cylindrical body shape and gaping elytra. They exhibit a conspicuous sexual dimorphism: The males bear large, pectinate maxillar palps. The larvae develop in living or freshly chopped wood and can cause severe technical damage. Among the larvae different feeding strategies have evolved: Some feed on wood directly, others build gardens of symbiotic fungi to extract nutrients from wood. |
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World: 70 | Europe: 3 | Germany: 3 | collected: 2
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fraction: 67% |
![]() Hylecoetus dermestoides ♂ |
![]() Lymexylon navale ♀ |