Mormolyce is a genus of ground beetles in the subfamily Lebiinae.[1] They all possess distinctive violin-shaped elytra and live between layers of bracket fungi.

Mormolyce
Mormolyce phyllodes
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Carabidae
Subfamily: Lebiinae
Tribe: Lebiini
Genus: Mormolyce
Hagenbach, 1825
Species

7; see text

The habits of Mormolyce are not yet very clear, but from the few existing studies it has been determined that their larval habits are completely different from most other Carabidae: their larvae live in huge (20 to 30 cm wide, or even larger) and very hard bracket fungi, in which they excavate channels. They pupate in the fungi too. After emergence, they create an "unbelievable small" hole (even narrower than their own bodies) to escape from their larval chambers, making it incredible to understand how they get out, even "allowing for the softness of its tissues". Their adults - like other Carabidae - are predatory. [2]

Species

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The genus contains the following seven species:[3]

References

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  1. ^ Lorenz, W. "Lebiini (1): Nomina Carabideum, Online Database", 2005. Retrieved on 2009-08-06.
  2. ^ "Notes on the Genus Mormolyce Hagenbach, A. Lieftinck". ResearchGate. Retrieved 2024-03-02.
  3. ^ "Mormolyce Hagenbach, 1825". Catalogue of Life. Retrieved 2023-04-08.
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