Biology of the preimaginal stages in trogid beetles (Coleoptera): Experimental data∗

Abstract Some aspects of larval behaviour in two species of trogid beetles, Trox bispidus (Pontoppidan) from temperate Europe and Afromorgus tuberosus (Klug) from tropical Africa, have been studied experimentally. From the results obtained it emerges that the rise of the newborn larvae towards the soil surface is imputable to a simple negative geotropism. Larval food relocation also contributes to reducing aggressive interactions at the food source. The potential range of trophic and behavioural variation seems to be larger than that expressed in nature as a rule. This can contribute to explaining, in evolutive terms, the rare cases of transgression from a uniform trophic and behavioural pa…