Sulcophanaeus imperator

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Phylum:Arthropoda
Class:Insecta
Suborder:Polyphaga
Sulcophanaeus imperator
Male Sulcophanaeus i. imperator
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Suborder: Polyphaga
Infraorder: Scarabaeiformia
Family: Scarabaeidae
Genus: Sulcophanaeus
Species:
S. imperator
Binomial name
Sulcophanaeus imperator
(Chevrolat, 1844)
Synonyms
  • Phanaeus dimidiatus Solier, 1851
  • Phanaeus imperator Chevrolat, 1844

Sulcophanaeus imperator is a brightly colored species of dung beetle belonging to the family Scarabaeidae. This diurnal, coprophagous beetle is native to south-central South America and generally common.[1] It is paracoprid, meaning that adults dig tunnels into the soil under the food source and move parts of the food source to a nest chamber where the eggs are laid.[2]

This species can be found in central to northwestern Argentina, central and southern Bolivia and western Paraguay in dry and thorny forests, pastures and scrublands at an elevation of 320–3,000 m (1,050–9,850 ft) above sea level.[1][3][4][5]

Subspecies

There are three subspecies,[6][7] which alternatively have been considered as color phases.[3]

  • Sulcophanaeus imperator imperator (Chevrolat, 1844) ("golden phase") – widespread in central and northern Argentina, Paraguay
  • Sulcophanaeus imperator alticollis Arnaud, 2002 ("red phase") – highlands of Bolivia, northern Argentina
  • Sulcophanaeus imperator obscurus Arnaud, 2002 ("green phase") – only known from La Rioja, Argentina

Description

References

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