Checkered Beetles (Cleridae) - 188 Species, Identification & Facts

Araeodontia marginalis

Identification: characterized by having piceous stripes extending along the sutural and lateral margins of the elytra in a continuous manner. No other species of Araeodontia possess such a distinctive type of elytral markings. Type locality: Mexico,

Araeodontia peninsularis

Identification: As in most maculate Cymatodera, peninsularis presents considerable varia- tion in color. One specimen has the elytra black with two, broad, indistinct ante-median fasciae, extending inward only slightly from the lateral margins, along

Chariessa catalina

Identification: Forebody, venter, forebody and venter pubescence, pale sanguineous; elytra more black than blue (USA) ...... Chariessa elegans Horn Forebody, venter, forebody and venter pubescence, crimson; elytra more blue than black (USA, Mexico) .

Chariessa dichroa

Identification: Pronotum unicolorous reddish, legs black

Chariessa elegans

Identification: Pronotum unicolorous, reddish; legs mostly reddish, tarsi black pair, along with dozens of others, on an oak that had been struck by lightning in Texas:

Chariessa floridana

Identification: Pronotal discal black lines narrow and distal to each other, tuft of gold setae between black lines; known only from Key Largo most recent spmn coll'ed in 1979

Chariessa pilosa

Identification: Pronotal discal black lines broad and proximal to each other ♂ ♀

Chariessa texana

Identification: Pronotum without two discal black lines, pronotal disc mostly red, with transverse black spot at anterior margin Type locality: Texas, Nolan County, Sweetwater (FMNH).

Chariessa vestita

potential intra-generic predation attempt described in Taber and Fleenor

Cregya america

Identification: Det. M. A. Quinn, 2020 Type Locality: FLORIDA, Lee Co. Lehigh Acres, 26-IV-2011

Cregya mixta

Identification: Pronotal sides dark brown, pronotal disc with 2 spots near base; elytral humeral dark marking extends to elytral middle Dets. of these LA & TX spmns by W. Opitz A narrow brown streak may connect the elytral humeral and preapical brown

Cregya oculata

Identification: Elytral disc uniformly brown, elytral margins testaceous; pronotal disc with two brown spots comes to lights

Cymatodera longicornis 0

Cymatodera longicornis

Identification: Antennae with joints two and three small, round, together shorter than joint four (first key couplet) Type Locality: Santa Fe, New Mexico

Cymatodera neomexicana

Identification: Cymatodera neomexicana is characterized by elongate paired metasternal carinae in the male, and the shape of the pygidium. The dorsal elytral patterning is not diagnostic. (J. Rifkind, pers. comm. to MAQ, 2018)

Cymatodera obliquefasciata

Type Locality: Esperanza Ranch, Brownsville, Cameron Co., Texas

Cymatodera oblita

Identification: "...impossible to identify without examining the terminalia." - Jacques Rifkind, 2010 Type Locality: Camp Grant, Arizona

Cymatodera sirpata

Identification: two wide, relatively smooth-edged black bands, each with a forward sutural protrusion, elytral apex pale Det. E. G. Riley 2009

Cymatodera tuta

Identification: Cymatodera tuta Wolcott and C. tutoides Barr are very similar. "The only difference among them is that females of the latter species have a subapical ridge on the fifth ventrite, whereas females of the former lack this ridge. Males ar

Undulate Checkered Beetle

Cymatodera undulata

Identification: four black undulating bands, elytral apex dark Det. A. Burke, 2017 comes to lights

Cymatodera wolcotti

collected at UV lights/traps, Malaise traps, a wooden block nest intercept trap, Lindgren funnel traps baited with alpha-beta pinene and ethanol (separately) and turpentine and frontalin (together)

Cymatoderella collaris

Identification: pronotum orange with apical and basal margins black Det. E. G. Riley 2009 coll'ed from flight-intercept traps, at mercury vapor and blacklights.

Enoclerus analis

Identification: "quite variable across their range" (J. Rifkind, pers. comm. to MAQ, 2025)

Enoclerus angustus

Identification: In FL, has blackish to reddish legs and is nearly entirely red to reddish-pink. Det. J. Rifkind, 2008 Leavengood's key to similar spp. in FL 3. Abdomen red..................................................4 3’. Abdomen black..........

Orange-banded Checkered Beetle

Enoclerus ichneumoneus

Identification: A very wide orangish-brown band across the middle of the elytra and an elongate scutellum

Enoclerus lunatus

Identification: Each elytron with one crescent-shaped creamy white slightly elevated lunula located behind the middle, the punctation of the lunula being much less coarse and dense than the remaining elytral regions, the pubescence on the lunula no m

Enoclerus nigrifrons

Identification: In FL, has a red head, pronotum, legs, antennae and mouthparts. The basal third of the elytra is red, followed by an arched, white mid-elytral fascia which is not anteriorly margined with black. - spmn from OK Det. K. H. Stephan, 2002

Lebasiella pallipes

This species has appeared but once in our lists under the name of pallipes and is not given in the Henshaw List. The species was stricken from our catalogues upon the supposition that it did not belong to our fauna, but that it was a species of Mexic

Lecontella brunnea

Identification: pronotal punctations small, fine and shallow Det. J. L. Neff, 2007 Type Locality: Brownsville, Texas

Lecontella gnara

Identification: Punctations on pronotal disc coarse, deep and wide

Madoniella chiricahua

Identification: PARATYPE Type locality: Chiricahua Mountains, Cochise Co., Arizona.

Monophylla californica

Monophylla californica (Monophylla californica) is a species in the family Cleridae, commonly known as checkered beetles, belonging to the order Coleoptera (Beetles). It is classified within the subfamily Tillinae, suborder Polyphaga, superfamily Cle

Red-legged Ham Beetle

Necrobia rufipes

Identification: Adult: head, thorax, elytra shiny metallic bluish-green or blackish; underside of abdomen dark blue; legs bright reddish-brown or orange; antennae mainly reddish-brown but with dark brown or black club at tip; sides of thorax and elyt

Neocallotillus elegans

Identification: Neocallotillus spp. are the only tillines of N. Amer. with the elytral surface adorned with a pale transverse, blister-like, swollen fascia.

Neohydnocera tabida

Identification: tabida's elytra are longer, with more rounded apices. (J. Leavengood, pers. comm. to MAQ, 2014)

Neorthopleura texana

Identification: disc of pronotum light brown, pronotal fringes dark brown , overall color pattern is brick and brown Det. M. A. Quinn, 2016 the following is not true antennomeres entirely dark in N. thoracica , funicular segments paler in N. texana a

Neorthopleura thoracica

Identification: pronotal disc is red and the lateral margins are narrowly black , overall color pattern is red and black Det. M. A. Quinn, 2016 the following is not true antennomeres entirely dark in N. thoracica , funicular segments paler in N. texa

Pelonides granulatipennis

Identification: Elongate black, elytra covered with small granules, red with two large black spots on each side which are usually confluent. Elytra distinctly broader than the thorax at base. I have taken about 15 specimens of this fine species on th

Pelonides humeralis

Identification: variable color pattern, see also type

Pelonides quadrinotata

Identification: individuals with any kind of red marking on the forebody (head+prothorax) are P. quadrinotata (which sometimes has no spots at all), while in P. quadripunctata the forebody is entirely black

Pelonides quadripunctata

Identification: forebody (head+prothorax) is entirely black (individuals with any red marking on the forebody are P. quadrinotata )

Pelonium maculicolle

Identification: Det. E. G. Riley, 2009 I have taken a considerable number of this species, which is in my experience the most common Clerid in this region. It occurred mostly on [Texas Ebony - Ebenopsis ebano ] and is a very slow insect. (Schaeffer 1

Pennasolis merkeli

Identification: Slender, parallel, piceous black, moderately shining, with sparsely placed erect hairs, and a silken white pubescence forming an indistinct design on the elytra, each elytron with a yellow spot on the margin behind the middle. Head co

Perilypus ornaticollis

Identification: serrate antennae Type Locality: Ohio

Phyllobaenus caeruleipennis

Identification: "While often distinctly metallic blue to green (Fig. 2), duller forms (Fig. 1) may be confused with the more robust-bodied P. pubescens (LeConte). The elytral form of P. caeruleipennis is similar to that of P. pallipennis (Say) and P.

Phyllobaenus discoideus

Type Locality: Colorado uncommonly encountered per GBIF data

Phyllobaenus humeralis

Phyllobaenus humeralis (Phyllobaenus humeralis) is a species in the family Cleridae, commonly known as checkered beetles, belonging to the order Coleoptera (Beetles). It is classified within the subfamily Hydnocerinae, suborder Polyphaga, superfamily

Phyllobaenus obscurus

Identification: Det. John Leavengood, 2012 Type locality: San Gerónimo, Guatemala

Phyllobaenus pallipennis

Identification: Recognized by its orangish antennae, mouthparts and legs, dark colored body, pronotum and head, and two yellowish markings on each elytron

Phyllobaenus rufipes

Identification: somewhat metallic blue-green with orangish legs, antennae and mouthparts

Phyllobaenus schusteri

Identification: Holotype record from Brownsville, TX (Schaeffer 1908) is in error. (J.Leavengood, pers.comm. to MAQ, 2015)

Phyllobaenus tricolor

Type Locality: Esperanza Ranch, Brownsville, Cameron Co., TX

Placopterus thoracicus

Identification: variable amount of black on prothorax Det. E. G. Riley, 2009

Ant Beetle

Thanasimus formicarius

Although the pattern varies, the elytra always has two pale cross bars. The thorax is red. It reaches a length of up to 10mm. Feeds on bark beetles and their grubs in various trees, it is therefore often seen on the trunks of trees. This beetle spend

Thanasimus nubilus

Identification: Humeral area of elytra above upper band and pronotum solid black; slightly larger in average than T. undatulus .

Thanasimus repandus

Identification: Holotype Closely resembles T. trifasciatus , but has black head and narrower, arcuate white apical band.

Thanasimus undatulus

Identification: Similar to Thanasimus nubilus (which was until recently considered a subspecies of T. undatulus ), but with humeral area of elytra and usually the pronotum red, though it may be black in some northern individuals.

Tillus elongatus

7-10mm. A distinctive species that is elongate and superficially like a soldier beetle. Males are all black but females have a bright red pronotum. Long but sparce hairs cover most of the dorsal surface. Both sexes have long, serrated antennae. A goo

Trichodes apivorus

Trichodes apivorus (Trichodes apivorus) is a species in the family Cleridae, commonly known as checkered beetles, belonging to the order Coleoptera (Beetles). It is classified within the subfamily Clerinae, suborder Polyphaga, superfamily Cleroidea.