Bugboy3092
Strategus
So, a few days ago I was out collecting leaves, and I found a group of beetles in the lower levels of leaves. On first sight, I immediately assumed that these were carrion beetles, they arent too large, and dont seem to be brightly colored like many silphids, but I grabbed them up anyways. Once I got home, I looked up what they could be in Art. Evans beetles of eastern North America with no success in the carrion beetles section. I skirted the areas around the silphid section, somehow missing the page two pages before the silphids, with no results. Today, I tried again, and landing on the page (117) saw the one beetle representing the family, and looking at my beetles, found them to be identical under light! Apparently, the species is necrophilus pettiti (makes sense, theyre pretty small haha) which isnt very common, and seldom collected. The book states that theyve been bred/reared with mouse droppings and decayed squirrel flesh. Of course, I dont really have access to theses items and need to find a substitute. Does anyone have any experience with these beetles, or could they help me figure out what would work? Thanks in advance!