Guardian Nature School Team Contact Blog Project Noah Facebook Project Noah Twitter

A worldwide community photographing and learning about wildlife

Join Project Noah!
nature school apple icon

Project Noah Nature School visit nature school

Devil's coach horse beetle

Ocypus ophthalmicus

Description:

An earwig-like bug I found running across my floor, about 2-3cm long. It was pretty fast moving and when I was trying to get it on to a tissue to put it outside it kept rearing up its back end almost defensively, a bit like the way a scorpion does.

Notes:

It is a long-bodied black beetle. At about 20–32 millimetres (0.8–1.3 in), it is one of the larger British beetles. Its wing covers (elytra) are short, covering only its thorax, exposing the abdominal segments. The abdominal musculature is powerful and the abdominal segments are covered with sclerotized plates. It is capable of flight, but its wings are rarely used. It is covered with fine, black hairs. It is well known for its habit of raising its long and uncovered abdomen and opening its jaws, rather like a scorpion when threatened. Although it has no sting, it can give a painful bite with its strong, pincer-like jaws. It also emits a foul-smelling odour, as a defensive secretion, from a pair of white glands at the end of its abdomen.

1 Species ID Suggestions

Devil's coach horse beetle
Ocypus olens Devil's coach horse beetle - Wikipedia


Sign in to suggest organism ID

No Comments

Chris79
Spotted by
Chris79

England, United Kingdom

Spotted on Aug 15, 2020
Submitted on Aug 15, 2020

Related Spottings

http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocypus_olens Devil's coach horse beetle Rove beetle Head Devil's Coach-horse

Nearby Spottings

Beautiful Plume Moth Spotting Wood Warbler European Red Fox
Noah Guardians
Noah Sponsors
join Project Noah Team

Join the Project Noah Team