Platychelus semihirtus

Platychelus semihirtus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Suborder: Polyphaga
Infraorder: Scarabaeiformia
Family: Scarabaeidae
Genus: Platychelus
Species:
P. semihirtus
Binomial name
Platychelus semihirtus

Platychelus semihirtus is a species of beetle of the family Scarabaeidae.[1] It is found in South Africa (Western Cape).[2][3]

Description

Adults reach a length of about 2.8 mm (0.11 in). They are similar to Platychelus melanurus, but a little wider. They are black, covered with grey hairs on the front (anterior) part only, the back (posterior) is smooth and hairless (glabrous). The plate between the wings (scutellum) has short hairs. The hardened wing covers(elytra) are light reddish brown (testaceous) in colour, finely pitted and with hairs that lie against the surface. In males, the pygidium is covered with scale-like (squamose) yellow hairs.[3]

References

  1. ^ BioLib
  2. ^ Schoolmeesters, P. (2025). "Platychelus semihirtus at Catalogue of Life". World Scarabaeidae Database (version 2025-10-07). In O. Bánki, Y. Roskov, M. Döring, G. Ower, D. R. Hernández Robles, C. A. Plata Corredor, T. Stjernegaard Jeppesen, A. Örn, T. Pape, D. Hobern, S. Garnett, H. Little, R. E. DeWalt, J. Miller, T. Orrell, & R. Aalbu, Catalogue of Life (2026-01-16). Amsterdam, Netherlands: Catalogue of Life Foundation. Retrieved March 16, 2026.
  3. ^ a b Péringuey, L. (1902). "Descriptive catalogue of the Coleoptera of South Africa (Lucanidae and Scarabaeidae), Sub-families: Rutelinae, Hopliinae". Transactions of the South African Philosophical Society. 12: 561–920. Retrieved March 16, 2026. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.