Genus
Cheilonycha
5 species
*Cheilonycha* Lacordaire, 1842 is a small Neotropical genus of tiger beetles inhabiting the bark and branches of forest trees across South America. These metallic, diurnally active beetles are remarkable among cicindelids for their bark-dwelling lifestyle, with larvae developing within burrows excavated in tree bark. With approximately four species distributed across the Neotropical region, *Cheilonycha* represents a distinctive element of the Amazonian forest fauna.
Diagnosis
DIAGNOSIS — *Cheilonycha* Lacordaire, 1842. Body small, 11–16 mm, elongate, cylindrical; L:W ratio 2–3. Coloration metallic. Eyes medium. Labrum subquadrate. Fully winged. Habitat distinctive: adults and larvae associated with bark and branches of Neotropical forest trees; larvae in bark burrows. Diurnal. Subtribe Odontocheilina; no confusion genera recorded.
Etymology
From Greek *χεῖλος* (lip) + *ónyx* (claw, nail) — referring to labral claw-like structures.
Species (5)
Distribution map — GBIF occurrences
GBIF · © OpenStreetMap · © CartoDB
Overview
*Cheilonycha* Lacordaire, 1842 is a small Neotropical genus of tiger beetles inhabiting the bark and branches of forest trees across South America. These metallic, diurnally active beetles are remarkable among cicindelids for their bark-dwelling lifestyle, with larvae developing within burrows excavated in tree bark. With approximately four species distributed across the Neotropical region, *Cheilonycha* represents a distinctive element of the Amazonian forest fauna.
Type species: Cicindela auripennis Lucas, 1857 [by subsequent designation (Moravec 2019)]
1. Wiesner, J. (2020) — checklist authority 2. Lacordaire, J.T. (1843) — original genus description 3. Moravec, J. (2020) — Cicindelini 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. Moravec, J. (2019) — Taxonomic revision—22. Genus Cheilonycha Lacordaire, 1842. Zootaxa 4700(4): 564-580. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4700.4.9 [definitive recent revision] 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. Horn, W. (1908, 1910, 1915) — Coleoptera Adephaga, fam. Carabidae, subfam. Cicindelinae. In: Wytsman, P. (Ed.) Genera Insectorum, fascicles 82a, 82b, 82c. L. Desmet-Verteneuil, Bruxelles. BHL bibliography/45481 [foundational historical monograph of Cicindelidae, treating all genera known at the time] +8 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