Some of you might remember this image:
That my friends is Ampedus cordifer, a rather small "click beetle" of the tribe Ampedini, native to California. Six adults were collected on one trip to the Angeles National Forest, they were placed as a group in a container measuring 4" x 4" at the base, and 10" in height. The container's bottom 2" were filled with compressed hard decayed wood (oak), and the remaining 6" of substrate were a mix of medium and soft decayed wood, as well as hardwood leafmulch. Two months after the enclosure was set up I started to notice mating. Five months after the initial set up I have found larvae in the substrate.
They are super tiny, but I am ecstatic to find them nonetheless.
Here is an image of two that were close together:
and a ruler for relative size:
I would say they are at least 8mm in length, and just under 1mm in width.
Happy thoughts.
That my friends is Ampedus cordifer, a rather small "click beetle" of the tribe Ampedini, native to California. Six adults were collected on one trip to the Angeles National Forest, they were placed as a group in a container measuring 4" x 4" at the base, and 10" in height. The container's bottom 2" were filled with compressed hard decayed wood (oak), and the remaining 6" of substrate were a mix of medium and soft decayed wood, as well as hardwood leafmulch. Two months after the enclosure was set up I started to notice mating. Five months after the initial set up I have found larvae in the substrate.
They are super tiny, but I am ecstatic to find them nonetheless.
Here is an image of two that were close together:
and a ruler for relative size:
I would say they are at least 8mm in length, and just under 1mm in width.
Happy thoughts.
