THE INSECTLIBRARY FIELD GUIDES
Rove BeetleIdentification, facts & practical guidance
Rove beetles are Staphylinidae. Many have short wing covers that leave much of the segmented abdomen exposed.
Compiled by the InsectLibrary Team · Updated · Editorial policy
Identification and lookalikes
Despite the short covers, many can fly using folded hindwings. Some raise the abdomen when disturbed. Unlike an earwig, a typical rove beetle does not have a prominent pair of rear forceps.
Diverse lives in small spaces
Species occupy litter, decaying wood, fungi, shorelines and other habitats. Feeding habits vary. Identification to species can require specialist examination, so a general body shape should not be treated as a precise name.
What to do next
Observe without crushing or handling an unidentified beetle. Photograph the antennae, wing covers and abdomen, and note the material it was living in.
Rove Beetle: species profiles
Explore 1235 species profiles covered by this guide, with recorded names and available photos.
Devil's Coach Horse
Ocypus olens
(c) leapb, some rights reserved (CC BY)Phosphuga atrata
Phosphuga atrata
Roundneck Sexton Beetle
Nicrophorus orbicollis
Large Rove Beetle -P. maculosus
Platydracus maculosus
Obscure Carrion Beetle
Silpha obscura
Silpha tristis
Silpha tristis
Hairy Rove Beetle
Creophilus maxillosus
Silpha carinata
Silpha carinata
Platydracus stercorarius
Platydracus stercorarius
Margined Carrion Beetle
Oiceoptoma noveboracense
Paederus fuscipes
Paederus fuscipes
Ocypus nitens
Ocypus nitens
Showing 12 of 1235 species. Browse all in Coleoptera →
Sources and further reading
- mdc.mo.gov - rove beetles staphylinidshttps://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/rove-beetles-staphylinids
References support the subject discussed here; they do not certify every imported directory record. Regional sources describe their own locations. Read our source and correction policy.