Prodontria lewisi
Encyclopedia
Prodontria lewisi is a species of beetle
in family Scarabaeidae
. It is endemic to New Zealand
.
which are strongly convex and feature deep lines passing along their length. Females are longer and wider than males, but males have longer tibiae
.
The only known location is an 81 hectare reserve, between Bannockburn and Cromwell, New Zealand
. The reserve was created in 1983 and, at the time, was only reserve in the world created solely for an invertebrate.
In 1997 it was declared to be "in imminent danger of extinction".
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...
in family Scarabaeidae
Scarabaeidae
The family Scarabaeidae as currently defined consists of over 30,000 species of beetles worldwide. The species in this large family are often called scarabs or scarab beetles. The classification of this family is fairly unstable, with numerous competing theories, and new proposals appearing quite...
. It is endemic to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.
Description
This large beetle has pale reddish-brown elytraElytron
An elytron is a modified, hardened forewing of certain insect orders, notably beetles and a few of the true bugs ; in most true bugs, the forewings are instead called hemelytra, as only the basal half is thickened while the apex is membranous...
which are strongly convex and feature deep lines passing along their length. Females are longer and wider than males, but males have longer tibiae
Arthropod leg
The arthropod leg is a form of jointed appendage of arthropods, usually used for walking. Many of the terms used for arthropod leg segments are of Latin origin, and may be confused with terms for bones: coxa , trochanter , femur, tibia, tarsus, ischium, metatarsus, carpus, dactylus ,...
.
Habitat
Cromwell sandy loam dune system.The only known location is an 81 hectare reserve, between Bannockburn and Cromwell, New Zealand
Cromwell, New Zealand
Cromwell is a town in Central Otago in the Otago region of New Zealand.It is situated between State Highway 6 and State Highway 8 leading to the Lindis Pass, 75 km northeast, and Alexandra, 33 km south. The road to Alexandra winds through the Cromwell Gorge...
. The reserve was created in 1983 and, at the time, was only reserve in the world created solely for an invertebrate.
In 1997 it was declared to be "in imminent danger of extinction".