The Origin of Anthophily Among the Coleoptera

Abstract

As pollinators of flowers the Coleoptera are less important than either the Hymenoptera, Diptera, or Lepidoptera. Of the total number of described species the majority are largely inhibited from visiting flowers by their forms or habits; many are predaceous both in the larval and adult stages, or are scavengers; others are noctur- nal, or aquatic, or occur chiefly on the ground lurking beneath stones and boards, or living in the nests of other orders of insects; while round or elliptical forms with short legs and very large species are ill-adapted to anthophily. Knuth has enumerated 434