Soldier beetle

Soldier beetles

Chauliognathus lugubris
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Coleoptera
Suborder:	Polyphaga
Superfamily:	Elateroidea
Family:	Cantharidae Imhoff, 1856
Genera
Many, see text
Synonyms
Chauliognathidae

The soldier beetles (Cantharidae) are relatively soft-bodied, straight-sided beetles. They are cosmopolitan in distribution. One of the first described species has a color pattern reminiscent of the red coats of early British soldiers, hence the common name. They are also known commonly as leatherwings because of their soft elytra.^[1]

Historically, these beetles were placed in a superfamily "Cantharoidea", which has been subsumed by the superfamily Elateroidea; the name is still sometimes used as a rankless grouping, including the families Cantharidae, Drilidae, Lampyridae, Lycidae, Omalisidae, Omethidae, Phengodidae (which includes Telegeusidae), and Rhagophthalmidae.

Selected genera

Absidia
Absidiella
Asilis
Athemus
Bactrocantharis
Belotus
Caccodes
Cantharis
Chauliognathus
Compsonycha
Cordylocera
Cratosilis
Crudosilis
Dichelotarsus
Discodon
Frostia
Hatchiana
Ichthyurus
Kandyosilis
Laemoglyptus
Lycocerus
Malthinellus
Malthinus
Malthodes
Malthomethes
Metacantharis
Microichthyurus
Micropodabrus
Mimopolemius
Neoontelus
Phytononus
Plectonotum
Podabrinus
Podabrus
Podosilis
Polemius
Prosthaptus
Prothemus
Pseudoabsidia
Rhagonycha
Silis
Sogdocantharis
Sphaerarthrum
Symphyomethes
Telephorus
Themus
Troglomethes
Tryphenis
Trypherus
Tylocerus
Tytthonyx

Soldier beetle filmed in Hesse, Germany

References

↑ Phillips, C., et al. Leatherwing (Soldier) Beetles. Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Tech and Virginia State University. 2013.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cantharidae.

Wikispecies has information related to: Cantharidae

Extant Coleoptera families

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Subclass: Pterygota
Infraclass: Neoptera
Superorder: Endopterygota

Suborder Archostemata

Crowsoniellidae (Crowsoniella relicta) Cupedidae (reticulated beetles) Jurodidae (Sikhotealinia zhiltzovae) Micromalthidae (telephone-pole beetle) Ommatidae

Suborder Adephaga

Extant families	Amphizoidae (trout-stream beetles) Aspidytidae Carabidae (ground beetles) Dytiscidae (predaceous diving beetles) Gyrinidae (whirligig beetles) Haliplidae (crawling water beetles) Hygrobiidae Meruidae (Meru phyllisae) Noteridae (burrowing water beetles) Rhysodidae (wrinkled bark beetles) Trachypachidae (false ground beetles)

Suborder Myxophaga

Hydroscaphidae (skiff beetles) Lepiceridae Sphaeriusidae Torridincolidae

Suborder Polyphaga

Bostrichiformia

Bostrichoidea	Anobiidae (furniture beetles, death watch beetles, spider beetles) Bostrichidae (auger beetles) Dermestidae (skin beetles) Jacobsoniidae (Jacobson's beetles) Nosodendridae (wounded-tree beetles)

Derodontoidea	Derodontidae (tooth-necked fungus beetles)

Cucujiformia

Chrysomeloidea	Cerambycidae (longhorn beetles) Chrysomelidae (leaf beetles) Disteniidae Megalopodidae Orsodacnidae Oxypeltidae Vesperidae

Cleroidea	Acanthocnemidae (Acanthocnemus nigricans) Chaetosomatidae Cleridae (checkered beetles) Melyridae (soft-wing flower beetles) Phloiophilidae (Phloiophilus edwardsi) Phycosecidae Prionoceridae Trogossitidae (bark-gnawing beetles)

Cucujoidea	Alexiidae Biphyllidae (false skin beetles) Boganiidae Bothrideridae (dry bark beetles) Byturidae (fruitworm beetles) Cavognathidae Cerylonidae (minute bark beetles) Coccinellidae (lady beetles, or God's cows) Corylophidae (minute fungus beetles) Cryptophagidae (silken fungus beetles) Cucujidae (flat bark beetles) Cyclaxyridae Discolomatidae Endomychidae (handsome fungus beetles) Erotylidae (pleasing fungus beetles) Helotidae Hobartiidae Kateretidae (short-winged flower beetles) Laemophloeidae (lined flat bark beetles) Lamingtoniidae (Lamingtonium binnaberrense) Latridiidae (minute brown scavenger beetles) Monotomidae (root-eating beetles) Myraboliidae Nitidulidae (sap beetles) Passandridae (parasitic flat bark beetles) Phalacridae (shining flower beetles) Phloeostichidae Propalticidae Protocucujidae Silvanidae (silvanid flat bark beetles) Smicripidae (palmetto beetles) Sphindidae (dry-fungus beetles)

Curculionoidea (weevils)	Anthribidae (fungus weevils) Attelabidae (leaf-rolling weevils) Belidae (primitive weevils) Brentidae (straight snout weevils, New York weevil) Caridae Curculionidae (true weevils, bark beetles, ambrosia beetles) Nemonychidae (pine flower weevils)

Lymexyloidea	Lymexylidae (ship-timber beetles)

Tenebrionoidea	Aderidae (ant-like leaf beetles) Anthicidae (ant-like flower beetles) Archeocrypticidae (cryptic fungus beetles) Boridae (conifer bark beetles) Chalcodryidae Ciidae (minute tree-fungus beetles) Melandryidae (false darkling beetles) Meloidae (blister beetles) Mordellidae (tumbling flower beetles) Mycetophagidae (hairy fungus beetles) Mycteridae (palm and flower beetles) Oedemeridae (false blister beetle) Perimylopidae, or Promecheilidae Prostomidae (jugular-horned beetles) Pterogeniidae Pyrochroidae (fire-coloured beetles) Pythidae (dead log bark beetles) Ripiphoridae (wedge-shaped beetles) Salpingidae (narrow-waisted bark beetles) Scraptiidae (false flower beetles) Stenotrachelidae (false longhorn beetles) Synchroidae (synchroa bark beetles) Tenebrionidae (darkling beetles) Tetratomidae (polypore fungus beetles) Trachelostenidae Trictenotomidae Ulodidae Zopheridae (ironclad beetles, cylindrical bark beetles)

Elateriformia

Buprestoidea	Buprestidae (jewel beetles, or metallic wood-boring beetles) Schizopodidae

Byrrhoidea	Byrrhidae (pill beetles) Callirhipidae (cedar beetles) Chelonariidae (turtle beetles) Cneoglossidae Dryopidae (long-toed water beetles) Elmidae (riffle beetles) Eulichadidae (forest stream beetles) Heteroceridae (variegated mud-loving beetles) Limnichidae (minute mud beetles) Lutrochidae (travertine beetles) Psephenidae (water-penny beetles) Ptilodactylidae

Dascilloidea	Dascillidae (soft bodied plant beetles) Rhipiceridae (cicada beetle, cicada parasite beetles)

Elateroidea	Anischiidae Artematopodidae (soft-bodied plant beetles) Brachypsectridae (Texas beetles) Cantharidae (soldier beetles) Cerophytidae (rare click beetles) Drilidae Elateridae (click beetles) Eucnemidae (false click beetles) Lampyridae (fireflies) Lycidae (net-winged beetles) Omalisidae Omethidae (false fireflies) Phengodidae (glowworm beetles, long-lipped beetles) Plastoceridae (Plastocerus angulosus) Podabrocephalidae Rhagophthalmidae Rhinorhipidae (Rhinorhipus tamborinensis) Throscidae (false metallic wood-boring beetles)

Scirtoidea	Clambidae Decliniidae (Declinia relicta) Eucinetidae (plate-thigh beetles) Scirtidae

Scarabaeiformia

Scarabaeoidea

Staphyliniformia

Histeroidea	Histeridae (clown beetles) Sphaeritidae (false clown beetles) Synteliidae

Hydrophiloidea	Epimetopidae Georissidae (minute mud-loving beetles) Helophoridae Hydrochidae Hydrophilidae (water scavenger beetles) Spercheidae

Staphylinoidea	Agyrtidae (primitive carrion beetles) Hydraenidae Leiodidae (round fungus beetles) Ptiliidae (feather-winged beetles) Scydmaenidae (ant-like stone beetles) Silphidae (carrion beetles) Staphylinidae (rove beetles)

List of subgroups of the order Coleoptera

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