Fun Beetle Facts For Kids

Beetles are literally everywhere. They are commonly found, but how do you truly identify a beetle? The first pair of wings is thickened and hardened in a beetle. This acts as a shield for the delicate flying wings hidden beneath it. The order, Coleoptera, itself means 'hardened wings'.

The Coleoptera is the biggest of all orders, with approximately 400,000 species, constitutes nearly 40% of defined bugs, and 25% of all acknowledged animal life-forms and new species are found frequently.

These arthropods are often attracted to fruity, spicy, or flesh-like smells. Most beetles have a compound set of eyes, which means they can see multiple views, but their vision is not clear and they're definitely not blind. Beetles communicate using sounds, vibrations, and pheromones.

Beetles are very important to humans because they help in decomposing, they are natural decomposers, and they also prey on insects that act as pests.

Below mentioned are more interesting facts about beetles. If you liked reading this, check out Asian lady beetle facts and dung beetle facts.

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What type of animal are beetles?

The species of beetles are a set of bugs that shape the order Coleoptera within the superorder Endopterygota. The front wings of beetles are hardened into wing cases, separating them from other insects.

What class of animals do beetles belong to?

A well-known fact about beetles is that they belong to the Insecta class of the animal world.

How many beetles are there in the world?

A 2015 survey gave four estimates of the beetle species, giving an average estimate of 1.5 million, with all four estimates ranging from 0.9-2.1 million beetle species. Thus with so many species of beetles, there is no exact number as to how many beetles are there in the world.

Where do beetles live?

Beetles can live in the desert, as well as along the seashore, in a swamp, in a forest, or maybe upon the mountains. Beetles are located in caves, meadows, and rainforests. Many beetles revel in human gardens because gardens are generally wet and full of food.

What is a beetle's habitat?

Beetles are discovered in nearly any habitat occupied by insects. Beetles can also stay underneath the ground, in dung, in water, or as commensals within the nests of social bugs, including ants and termites. Most larvae of beetles live underneath a bark, in rotting wood, or in soil. The adults are normally located on flowers.

Who do beetles live with?

Beetle species are regarded to be eusocial, meaning that they only live with other members of their species with whom they can reproduce. These species are like ants, bees and termites, it lives in a multi-generational colony of tightly associated members, and show cooperative care of juveniles.

How long do beetles live?

Facts about beetles include the life span of adult beetles (Order: Coleoptera) being between 13 days and 44 days. Beetles don't have a long lifespan.

How do they reproduce?

Eggs can be laid singly or in groups and typically are laid at a place that permits perfect development of the larva, on a leaf of several plants (these are leaf-ingesting species), in the bark, or in tree trunks (wood borers). Eggs can be laid close to roots, in flowers, in fruits, in tree injuries, on water plants, or below rocks.

Most females of the species lay eggs on plants. After the larva has hatched, it feeds till its pores and skin become small and split. After the prepupal stage, the insect enters the pupal stage. The pupa, which forms underneath the very last larval pores and skin and emerges while it splits, resembles the adult. Besides that, it's far smooth and pale. In addition, the appendages are curled or loosely connected to the body, and the wings are folded in flat baggage known as wing pads. The grownup emerges while the skinny pores and skin of the pupa are shed; the wings stretch out to complete size, and the brand new outer skeleton hardens and becomes colored.

What is their conservation status?

The conservation status of the beetle species that is normally considered a pest of the largest order throughout history is of Least Concern (as per the IUCN Red List).

What do beetles look like?

The fashionable anatomy of a beetle is pretty uniform and standard. Some staghorn beetle facts are that they have a marked sexual dimorphism, the adult males having enlarged mandibles, which they use to combat different adult males. Many beetles are aposematic, with vibrant colors and styles, caution in their toxicity, while others are innocent Batesian mimics of such insects.

How cute are they?

Longhorn beetle facts are that most species are characterized by having extraordinarily long antennae, which can frequently be so long as or longer than the beetle's body. Beetles, in general, have an eerie and mysterious appearance to them. Hence they are not cute and are characterized as creepy crawlies.

How do they communicate?

Most of the beetles communicate with different beetles with chemicals. Some beetle make sounds, normally scraping their mouthparts collectively or rubbing their legs on their bodies. Other beetles like bark beetles that stay in lifeless wood, drum and make vibrations.

How big are beetles?

Adult beetles, like bark beetles, are 4.3 in (11 cm) tall, and some adult beetles can grow up to  1.5-2.3 in (4-6 cm) long.

How fast can beetles move?

There are 2,600 species of those long-legged predatory insects like the dung beetle, Japanese beetle, and carpet beetle, and the quickest bug beetles can dash at as much as 5 mph (8 kph).

How much do beetles weigh?

This bug family of beetles can weigh up to 2.5-3.5 oz (70-100 g) in its lifetime.

What are the male and female names of the species?

There are no specific male and female names for beetles.

What would you call a baby beetle?

A baby beetle is known as a larva as it goes through different stages of maturity.

What do they eat?

Most beetles feed on plant parts, both leaves, and seeds or fruit and wood. Many also prey on different small animals. Some feed on fungus, and there is a gaggle of species that eat dung. Sometimes the larvae devour distinct meals than the adults do. They feed on plants, small bug insects, and animal fibers, depending on the species. A few beetles are considered pests in gardens and crops, even though a few species may also benefit human beings by killing dangerous insects. Adults frequently deposit their eggs close to the meals that the larvae will devour after they hatch.

Are they dangerous?

There are just a few kinds of beetles that could bite humans, however, they cannot kill humans. When this happens, it's generally due to accidental touch between the individual and the beetle. Some beetles have a painful bite if threatened or provoked.

Would they make a good pet?

Beetles are known as pests to the gardens and crops as they destroy these food sources to eat and lay eggs. This insect is a pest that has strong legs and wings too. Since they are pests, beetles cannot make good pets.

Did you know...

Beetles are pests with wings that eat both plants and other bugs. They damage stored food and are hard to get rid of due to their wings by which they can take flight. Even though beetles have a lot of food, they don't live long.

Different types of beetles

These consist of Chrysomelidae (leaf beetles), Cerambycidae (longhorn beetles), Scarabaeidae (scarab beetles), and Carabidae (ground beetles). There are several variations among these pests.

Interacting with beetles

Most beetles want an extensive opening to get into the flower because they may be clumsy fliers. Beetles are a nuisance due to their potential to harm food and property. If you have beetles in your house, it could be because you brought inside an infested product with you, such as grains, flour, and pulses. In this case, to keep them out or kill them, freeze the product for four days, and the beetles will die. Keep bay leaves at different places to keep these beetles at bay.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other arthropods including water beetle facts and Christmas beetle facts.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable beetle coloring pages.

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