Melyridae
Melyridae are a family of beetles of the superfamily Cleroidea.
Description
Most are elongate-oval, soft-bodied beetles 10 mm long or less. Many are brightly patterned in black and brown, yellow, or red. Some melyrids have peculiar orange structures along the sides of the abdomen, which may be everted and saclike or withdrawn into the body and inconspicuous. Some melyrids have the two basal antennomeres greatly enlarged. Most adults and larvae are predaceous, but many are common on flowers. The most common North American species belong to the genus Collops ; C. quadrimaculatus is reddish, with two bluish black spots on each elytron.
Four New Guinean species of Choresine have been found to contain batrachotoxins, which may account for the toxicity of some birds such as the blue-capped ifrit and hooded pitohui which eat them. The hypothesis that Phyllobates frogs in South America obtain batrachotoxins from related genera of the Melyridae has not been tested due to the difficulty of field-work in Colombia.
Evolutionary history
The oldest fossil of the family are Sinomelyris and Juraniscus from the late Middle Jurassic Daohugou bed in Inner Mongolia, China. The oldest member of Dasytinae is Protodasytes from the early Late Cretaceous aged Charentese amber of France.
Distribution
The family Melyridae contains over 100 genera worldwide, with ~520 species in 48 genera in North America, and 16 genera in Europe; the largest diversity is in dry temperate regions.
Subfamilies
Various authorities have, at times, treated each of the presently-recognized subfamilies as families, and a few tribes have been accorded family status, as well. The family Mauroniscidae was removed from Melyridae in 1995, and Rhadalidae in 2019.
Selected genera
Ablechrus Waterhouse, 1877Amauronia Westwood, 1839Amecocerus Solier 1849Anthocomus Erichson, 1840Anthodromius Redtenbacher, 1850Anthomalachius Tshernyshev, 2009Apalochrus Erichson, 1840Arthrobrachus Solier, 1849Astylus Laporte, 1836Asydates Casey, 1895Attalus Erichson, 1840Attalusinus Leng, 1918Axinotarsus Motschulsky, 1854Balanophorus MacLeay, 1872Byturosomus Motschoulsky, 1859Carphuroides Champion, 1923Carphurus Erichson, 1840Cerallus Jacquelin Du Val, 1859Cerapheles Mulsant & Rey, 1867Ceratistes Fischer von Waldheim, 1844Chaetocoelus Leconte, 1880Chalchas Blanchard, 1845Chalicorus Erichson, 1840Charopus Erichson, 1840Clanoptilus Motschulsky, 1854Collops Erichson, 1840Colotes Erichson 1840Condylops Redtenbacher, 1849Cordylepherus Evers, 1985Cradytes Casey, 1895Cyrtosus Motschulsky, 1854Danacea Laporte, 1838Dasytastes Casey, 1895Dasytellus Casey, 1895Dasytes Casey, 1895Dasytidius Schilsky, 1896Dicranolaius Champion, 1921Divales Laporte de Castelnau, 1836Dolichophron Kiesenwetter, 1867Dolichosoma Stephens, 1830Ebaeus Erichson, 1840Enallonyx Wolcott, 1944Endeodes LeConte, 1859Enicopus Stephens, 1830Eschatocrepis Leconte, 1861Falsomelyris Pic, 1913Hadrocnemus Kraatz, 1895Halyles Broun, 1883Haplomalachius Evers, 1985Hoppingiana Blaisdell, 1924Hylodanacaea Pic, 1926Hypebaeus Kiesenwetter, 1863Intybia Pascoe, 1866Laius Guérin-Méneville, 1830Leptovectura Casey, 1895Listropsis Blaisdell, 1924Listrus Motschoulsky, 1859Malachius Fabricius, 1775Melyris Fabricius, 1775Melyrodes Gorham, 1882Microlipus Leconte, 1852Nepachys Thomson, 1859Nodopus Marshall, 1951Pagurodactylus Gorham, 1900Psilothrix Redtenbacher, 1858Scelopristis Mayor, 2004Sphinginus Mulsant & Rey, 1867SpinapalochrusTanaops Leconte, 1859Temnopsophus Horn, 1872Trichochrous Motschulsky, 1859Trophimus Horn, 1870Vecturoides Fall, 1930