Horned Matchhead Beetle
Leafy Legs
Ellura
Horned Matchhead Beetle
Perspective
 
                      
Horned Matchhead Beetle (Pheidoliphila carbo)Class: Animals (Animalia) - Jointed Legs (Arthropoda) - Insects (Insecta)
Order: Beetles (Coleoptera)
Family: Clown Beetle (Histeridae)     iNaturalist Observation
Species: Horned Matchhead Beetle (Pheidoliphila carbo)
This Photo:     Posterior

Thank you Dr Michael Caterino for confirming the id of this species for us

General Species Information:
Found on Ellura (in the Murray Mallee, SA) and elsewhere
1st Live Photo on-line:
1st Atlas record since 1910:

~3mm long. Notice the Charcoal body, leafy legs and orange hair tufts on the shoulders.
The head is able to retract all the way in to form a strong protective shell.

Copyright © 2020-2024 Brett & Marie Smith. All Rights Reserved. Photographed 24-Apr-2020
This species is an Australian Native Species, not listed in the SA Murray Mallee Survey of 2010.