Latin Name:
Nicrophorus sp.
(R. Bercha, det.)
Length: 12 to 35 mm
Range: Through out Alberta
Habitat: Near small animal carcasses
Time of year seen: Summer
Diet: Carrion
Other: There are 10 species of Burying Beetles (genus Nicrophorus) in the Alberta. They range from 12 to 35 mm in length, their elytra are truncated and usually have red or orange markings. True to their namesake , these beetles search out small dead animals such as voles and mice to inter. Once a carcass is located the beetles bury it by removing the underlying soil causing the carcass to sink into the ground. Upon completion the beetles move around the carcass forming a crypt-like chamber. Additional preparations continue with the removal of the hair from the cadaver and then shaping it into a ball. The female beetle excavates a tunnel off of the main chamber and lays up to 30 eggs in its wall. At this point the male vacates the chamber. Upon hatching the larva crawl back to the main chamber and enter the carrion ball through a hole chewed by the female. The female primes the larva with regurgitated food and then they begin to feed. The larva pass through 3 instars lasting 1/2 a day, 1 day and 5 to 15 days respectively. When the larva are fully developed they burrow into the surrounding soil to pupate for 13 to 15 days before emerging as adults. Most adult Nicrophorus carry a menagerie of symbiotic mites. These mites attack and feed on fly eggs on the carcass and in the surrounding soil. This removes a source of competition for the beetle larva. In exchange the adult beetles provide transportation to new carcasses and to additional fly eggs for the mites. (Anderson et al, 1985)