Carabidae: Pterostichus amethystinus

Pterostichus amethystinus Mannerheim 1843

Carabidae, Coleoptera, Insecta, Arthropoda, Animalia

Matthew Denton, The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA 98505 USA.

01 April 1997


Identification

A striking, light black, medium sized species with body length less than 19.5 mm. Lateral margin of pronotum smooth or nearly so; elytron flat with a strong shoulder tooth and with distinct violet metallic reflection; microsculpture of prothorax with less transverse meshes than in P. algidus.

Range

Found along the Pacific coast from northern California to Skagway, Alaska.

Natural History

A true forest species occurring in dense, moist, coniferous forests, usually under logs. Found in elevations ranging from sea level to sub-alpine treelines.


References

Kavanaugh, D. H. 1992. Carabid beetles (Insecta: Coleoptera: Carabidae) of the Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia. Memoirs of the California Academy of Sciences Number 16. California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, California, USA.

Lindroth, C. H. 1961-1969. The ground beetles (Carabidae excl. Cicindelinae) of Canada and Alaska. Parts 1-6. Opuscula Entomologica xlviii + 1192 pp.


For information about this page: John T. Longino longinoj@evergreen.edu

Last modified: 04/01/1997