Typhaeus typhoeus
| Typhaeus typhoeus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Typhaeus typhoeus male | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Suborder: | Polyphaga |
| Family: | Geotrupidae |
| Genus: | Typhaeus |
| Species: | T. typhoeus |
| Binomial name | |
| Typhaeus typhoeus | |
Typhaeus typhoeus (minotaur beetle) is a species of earth-boring dung beetles native to Europe.[2][3] The beetles feed on faeces of herbivorous animals, preferably rabbits and small ruminants such as sheep and deer. They inhabit sandy soils in light pine forests or sandy heaths . The animals have now become rare and are protected in Germany. The adult beetles are rarely found, the open, circular, approximately 1 cm large entrances of the housing and brood chambers, which are found on vegetation-free soil sites, are much more striking.
brood chamber entrance
It is named after the Typhon a giant of Greek mythology.
References
- ↑ Linnaeus C. (1758). Systema naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. Editio Decima, Reformata. Laurentii Salvii, Stockholm
- ↑ Fauna Europaea
- ↑ Norman H. Joy, , 1932 A Practical Handbook of British Beetles
http://www.wildlifetrusts.org/species/minotaur-beetle
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