Darkling beetles are a family of beetle

Beetle

Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms...

s found worldwide, estimated at more than 20,000 species. Many of the beetles have black elytra, leading to their common name. Apart from the 9 subfamilies listed here, the tribe

Tribe (biology)

In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes.Some examples include the tribes: Canini, Acalypheae, Hominini, Bombini, and Antidesmeae.-See also:* Biological classification* Rank...

 Opatrini

Opatrini

Opatrini is a tribe of darkling beetles in the subfamily Tenebrioninae.-Selected genera:* Adavius* Ammobius* Anemia* Clitobius* Dilamus* Falsocaedius* Gonocephalum* Hadrodes* Hadrus...

 of the Tenebrioninae

Tenebrioninae

Tenebrioninae are a large subfamily of the darkling beetles , containing among others the flour beetles.Many of these robust and usually mid-sized beetles have elytra with some sort of corrugation on the upperside...

 is sometimes considered a distinct family, and/or the Pimeliinae are included in the Tenebrioninae as a tribe Pimeliini.

Darkling beetles eat both fresh and decaying vegetation.