Generic Guide to New World Scarab Beetles-Glossary

Aciculate	appearing as if superficially scratched.
Acuminate	tapering to a point.
Alutaceous	covered with minute cracks, like the human skin.
Anterior	front or forward; opposite of posterior.
Apex .	the apical or distal part of any structure; on the thorax, that part nearest the head.
Arcuate	arched, bow-like.
Arenicolous	frequenting or living in sandy areas.
Areolate	having areolae, or small spaces in a network.
Areola Apposita	the roughened or rugose area on the sides of the pronotal disc.
Articulated	with reference to a tibial spur, a spur that is moveable as in a ball and socket.

Base	on the thorax that part nearest the abdomen; on the abdomen that part nearest the thorax.
Bifurcate	divided or forked into two.
Boss	a low, rounded tumescence.

Carina	an elevated ridge or keel.
Castaneous	chestnut brown; bright red-brown.
Chaetoparia .	on the epipharynx of scarabaeoid larvae, the inner part of the paria covered with bristles.
Claw	a sharp structure (usually paired) at the apex of the insect leg.
Clithrum .	in scarabaeoid larvae, a paired short sclerome in the anterior part of the margin of the epipharynx.
Club	in the insect antenna, the enlarged distal segments.
Clypeus .	that part of the head of a scarab in front of the frons; in dorsal view that part of the head that is most anterior.
Confused	running together or without a definite pattern, as markings or lines or punctures.
Congener	a species belonging to the same genus as another.
Costae	in scarabs, the longitudinal and elevated ridges of the wing covers.
Coxa	the basal segment of the leg that articulates the leg to the body.
Crazed	with small cracks on the surface.
Crenate	scalloped with small, blunt, rounded teeth.
Crenulate	with small scallops.
Cretaceous	chalky white.
Cupreous	metallic copper red in color.

Declivous	sloping downward.
Depressed	slightly concave.
Detritivore	an animal that feeds on detritus.
Disc	the central upper surface of any part.
Dorsal	of or belonging to the upper surface.

Elytra .	the anterior, chitinous wings of beetles that serve as covers to the hind (flight) wings.
Emarginate	notched or with a rounded or obtuse section removed from a margin.
Endemic	native, not introduced.
Epipharynx . . . . . . . .	an organ, probably of taste, on the inner surface of the labrum and supposedly corresponding to the palate of vertebrates. In scarab larvae, the complex buccal area forming the inner (or under lining) of the labrum and extending below the clypeus; it includes the following regions: (1) corypha, (2) paria (subdivided into acanthoparia, gymnoparia, and acroparia) bearing the plegmatium, proplegmatium and phobae, with posterior margin strengthened to the right by the dexiotorma and to the left by the laeotorma, (3) haptomerum composed of zygum and epizygum, (4) pedium, (5) haplolachus composed of nesia (usually two) and the crepis.
Epipleuron .	the inflexed (or bent-under) portion of the elytra next to the lateral edge.
Excised	with a cut or notch.
Explanate	spread out and flattened; applied to a margin.

Femur .	usually the stoutest segment of the leg, articulated to the body through trochanter and coxa and bearing the tibia at its distal end.
Flange .	a distinct, gradual or abrupt, expansion of the elytral margin usually at or behind the middle of many Cyclocephala species.
Foliaceous	leaf-like.
Fovea	a deep depression with well-marked sides; a pit.
Frons .	the upper portion of the head capsule behind the clypeus and before the vertex.
Frontoclypeal suture	the transverse suture between the frons and the clypeus.
Fuscous	dark brown, approaching black.

Glabrous	smooth, without hair.
Granular	covered with small grains.

Hamate	bent like a hook.
Haptomerum . . .	in scarab larvae, the medio-anterior region of the epipharynx, in front of the pedium and behind the corypha, or behind the apical region consisting of the united acropariae and corypha; composed of the zygum, various sensillae and a series of crepis.
Helus (pl. heli) .	in scarab larvae, a coarse fixed spine without a cup, belonging to the region of the haptomerum.
Humerus	the basal exterior angle of the elytra.

Imbricate	appearing somewhat like shingles on a roof or scales on a fish.
Immaculate	lacking spots or marks.
Impressed	having shallow, depressed area(s).
Impunctate	not punctate.
Inquiline .	an insect that habitually lives in the nests of other insects or animals, as species of Cremastocheilus in ant nests or Aphodius in rodent burrows.
Instar . .	the form assumed between molts in the larva, numbered to designate the various periods, e.g., the first instar is the stage between the egg and first molt, etc.
Interocular	between the eyes.
Interval	the longitudinal space between striae on the elytron of a beetle.
Iridescence .	showing different colors by diffraction, as in a rainbow; as in some species of Serica.

Keel	an elevated ridge or carina.

Labrum .	the upper lip that covers the base of the mandibles and forms the roof of the mouth.
Lateral	relating to the side.
Longitudinal	in the direction of the long axis.

Margin	the more or less narrow part of a surface within the edge.
Marginal line .	a thickened or elevated edge distinct from the surface within; also called marginal bead.
Median	in or at the middle, pertaining to the middle.
Mentum .	the distal sclerite of the insect labium bearing the moveable parts, attached to and sometimes fused with the submentum.
Mesad	toward the middle of the body.
Molar Area	the ridged or roughened grinding surface of the mandibles.
Monostichous	with a single row of pali on the last segment of larvae.
Myrmecophilous	ant-loving; applied to insects that live in ant nests, as in Cremastocheilini.

Necrophagous	feeding on dead or decaying matter.
Nomen nudum .	(Latin) a specific taxonomic name without a description or an improperly published name; therefore invalid and not available for use.
Nomen Oblitum . . .	a name unused since 1899 that does not take precedence over a younger synonym or homonym in prevailing usage (Article 23.9.2 of the 1999 Code).
Nomen Protectum	a name that should be preserved but that does not have priority.

Obsolete	almost or entirely absent; indistinct; not fully developed.
Ocellate .	in reference to punctures, those that are ringed by either a rim or a different color.
Opaque	without any surface luster; opposite of shiny.

Palidium . . . . . . .	(pl. palidia)--in scarab larvae, a group of pali arranged in a single row or two or more rows and placed either across the venter in front of the lower anal lip, or paired and extending forward and inward from one of the ends of the anal slit, or paired and extending straight, arcuately or obliquely forward from inside of one of the ends of the anal slit; the pali are usually recumbent with their apices directed toward the septula; the palidium may be monostichous, distichous, tristichous, or polystichous depending on whether there are one, two, three, or multiple rows of pali.
Palus	(pl. pali)--a pointed spine, a component of the palidium.
Parameres	two lateral, sclerotized processes arising from the phallobase.
Phytophagous	feeding upon plants.
Piceous	pitchy black.
Polystichous	with more than one row of pali on the last segment in larvae.
Posterior	rear or rearward; opposite of anterior.
Pronotum	the upper or dorsal surface of the prothorax.
Proplegmatium .	(pl. proplegmatia) -- in scarab larvae, a paired space with a plicate surface inside and usually somewhat in front of a plegmatium.
Prosternal Process	the small to large, usually columnar process on the venter of the prosternum immediately behind the procoxae in Dynastinae.
Pruinose .	with the surface somewhat obscured by the appearance of a bloom like that of a plum but which cannot be rubbed off; covered as if frosted.
Pubescent	covered with short setae.
Punctate	with impressed points or punctures.
Punctate-striate	with rows of punctures, simulating and taking the place of striae.
Puncture	a small impression on the hard surface of the body.
Pygidium	the last segment usually left exposed by the elytra.

Raster . .	in scarab larvae, a complex of definitely arranged bare places, hairs, and spines on the ventral surface of ithe last abdominal segment in front of the anus.
Recurved	bending backwards or back on itself.
Reflexed	a margin that bends upward.
Rufotestaceous	reddish yellow.
Rugopunctate	a surface both rugose and punctate; rugae and punctures mixed.
Rugose	wrinkled
Rugulose	minutely wrinkled.
Rufous	pale red.

Saprophagous	feeding on dead or decaying vegetable matter.
Scalloped	with the edge marked with rounded hollows.
Scabriculous	minutely or finely, irregularly roughened.
Scabrous	irregularly roughened.
Scape	the first or basal segment of the antenna.
Scutellum	in Coleoptera, the triangular piece between the bases of the elytra.
Septula . . . .	in scarab larvae, a narrow bare region of the raster between a single transverse palidium and the base of the lower anal lip, or between a pair of oblique palidia diverging backward to the end of the anal slit, or between a pair of backward diverging or parallel or curved palidia to inside the ends of the anal slit.
Setae	a small hair; either minute, short, or long and either slender or robust.
Setigerous	bearing setae.
Shagreened	covered with a closely-set roughness, like leather.
Shiny, Shining	with a lustrous surface.
Sinuate	wavy, specifically of edges or margins.
Spiracle .	the lateral opening on the segments of the insect body through which air enters the tracheae.
Spur	a spine-like appendage of the cuticle, articulated or not; generally on the tibia.
Stadium	(pl. stadia) -- the interval of time between the molts of a larva.
Stem	the segments of the antenna exclusive of the club.
Sternite	the ventral part of a segment.
Stria .	(pl. striae) -- in Coleoptera, a longitudinal depressed line or furrow, frequently with punctures, usually extending from the base to the apex of the elytra.
Stridulate .	to make a creaking, grating, or hissing sound or noise by rubbing two roughened surfaces against each other.
Sub	a Latin prefix meaning not quite or almost.
Subequal	similar but not quite equal in form, size, or other characters.
Suffused	clouded or obscured by a darker color.
Sulcate	deeply furrowed or grooved.
Sulcus	a furrow or groove.
Suture	the line of juncture of the elytra.

Tarsomere	(pl. tarsomeres) -- one of the segments of the tarsus.
Tarsungulus	the apical, claw-bearing joint in scarab larvae.
Tarsus .	(pl. tarsi) -- the foot; the jointed appendage attached to the apex of the tibia; the distal part of the insect leg consisting (in scarabs) of five segments.
Tawny	brownish yellow, like the color of a tanned hide.
Teges . .	in scarab larvae, a continuous, dense or sparse, patch of hooked or straight, large or small, outward pointing or erect setae occupying the hind part (or almost the whole) of the tenth abdominal venter when the palidium is absent.
Teneral	the condition of the adult shortly after emergence when it is not entirely hardened or fully colored.
Tergite	the dorsal part of a segment.
Termitophilous .	termite-loving, applied to an insect (or other animals) habitually living in a termite nest with and among the termites.
Testaceous	brownish-yellow in color.
Tibia .	the fourth division of the leg, articulated at the proximal end to the femur and bearing on the distal end of the tarsi.
Tomentose	covered with tomentum.
Tomentum	a form of pubescence composed of matted setae; especially notable in some Troginae.
Tooth	an acute angulation; a short pointed process from an appendage or margin.
Transverse	broader than long.
Trichomes .	modified hairs present on certain myrmecophilous insects that give off secretions which ants imbibe; as in Cremastocheilini.
Trochanter	a sclerite of the insect leg, sometimes divided, between the coxa and femur.
Truncate	cut off squarely at the apex.
Tubercle	a small, conical bump.
Tuberculate	having tubercles.
Tumescent	somewhat swollen or puffed up.
Tumid	swollen, enlarged.

Umbilicate .	navel-shaped; often used for a puncture with a small nub at the bottom.
Umbone .	an elevated knob situated on the humeral or apical angles of the elytra, hence humeral umbone and apical umbone.
Unarmed	lacking spurs, spines, or armature of any kind.

Velutinous	a velvety, dense, short pubescense seen in many Agaocephalini.
Venter	the under surface of the body in general.
Ventral	pertaining to the under surface of the body.
Verrucose	covered with wart-like prominences.
Vertex	the top of the head between the frons and occiput.