Genus
Bostrichophorus
2 species
*Bostrichophorus* Thomson, 1856 is a small, poorly known genus of tiger beetles from the Oriental region, inhabiting forest floors and low vegetation under the cover of darkness. These compact, dark-bodied beetles are brachypterous — their reduced wings render them flightless — and adults have been recorded on low vegetation as well as ground substrate, while larvae develop in soil near plant bases. The genus name derives from Greek, meaning "curl-bearing," likely referencing the distinctive setation of the body.
Diagnosis
DIAGNOSIS — *Bostrichophorus* Thomson, 1856. Body small to medium, 12–20 mm; cylindrical, elongate (L:W >3.0). Coloration dark, matte. Eyes large, protuberant. Labrum subquadrate. Elytra elongate; wings brachypterous. Pronotum subquadrate, narrower than head. Nocturnal; semi-arboreal, found on low vegetation and ground substrate; larvae in soil near plant bases. No confusion genera recorded within Dromicina for this genus.
Etymology
From Greek *bóstrychos* (curl, lock of hair) + *phorós* (bearing) — "curl-bearing", referring to setation.
Species (2)
Distribution map — GBIF occurrences
GBIF · © OpenStreetMap · © CartoDB
Overview
*Bostrichophorus* Thomson, 1856 is a small, poorly known genus of tiger beetles from the Oriental region, inhabiting forest floors and low vegetation under the cover of darkness. These compact, dark-bodied beetles are brachypterous — their reduced wings render them flightless — and adults have been recorded on low vegetation as well as ground substrate, while larvae develop in soil near plant bases. The genus name derives from Greek, meaning "curl-bearing," likely referencing the distinctive setation of the body.
Type species: Bostrichophorus bianconii (J. Thomson, 1857) [by monotypy]
1. Wiesner, J. (2020) — checklist authority 2. Chaudoir, M. de (1860) — original genus description 3. Werner, K. (2000) — Tiger Beetles of Africa, Vol. 2 4. Pearson, D.L. & Vogler, A.P. (2001) — Tiger Beetles: The Evolution, Ecology, and Diversity of the Cicindelids. Cornell Univ. Press, Ithaca, 333 pp. [ISBN 0-8014-3882-9] 5. Werner, K. (1999/2000) — The Tiger Beetles of Africa (Coleoptera: Cicindelidae). Volumes I (1999, 191 pp) and II (2000, 207 pp). Taita Publishers, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic. [Color picture-catalogue of 396 species in 34 genera; covers sub-Saharan Africa excluding Madagascar; 779 colour photographs in Vol II alone] 6. Duran, D.P. & Gough, H.M. (2020) — Validation of tiger beetles as distinct family (Cicindelidae) and reclassification within Coleoptera. Systematic Entomology 45(4): 723-729. DOI: 10.1111/syen.12440 [validates Cicindelidae as separate family] 7. Gough, H.M., Duran, D.P., Kawahara, A.Y. & Toussaint, E.F.A. (2018) — A comprehensive molecular phylogeny of tiger beetles (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Cicindelinae). Systematic Entomology 43(3): 567-586. DOI: 10.1111/syen.12324 [ML phylogeny of 328 taxa, 9 gene regions] 8. Wiesner, J. (2020) — Checklist of the Tiger Beetles of the World, 2nd edition (Verzeichnis der Sandlaufkäfer der Welt, 27. Beitrag zur Kenntnis der Cicindelidae). Winterwork, Borsdorf, 534 pp. [Authoritative current world checklist] 9. Chaudoir, M. de — Bulletin de la Société Impériale des Naturalistes de Moscou (multiple volumes 1843-1865). BHL bibliography/4951 [open access] +5 citations · full list in paid edition
Living Book · World Monograph 2026
Genera and Subgenera of Tiger Beetles
240 genera · 3,715 taxa · 194-character matrix · 12 months free updates