Diet

• Adults: The feeding habits of Taphroscelidia linearis are poorly understood. Adults are associated with bark and the galleries of wood-boring insects, where they may prey on small organisms or consume material associated with the galleries.

• Larvae: The immature biology is particularly poorly known. Members of Passandridae are generally associated with wood-boring insect larvae and pupae, and T. linearis has been recorded inhabiting bark-beetle galleries.

Range

• Taphroscelidia linearis is a parasitic flat bark beetle in the family Passandridae.

• It is occasionally sighted in Zihua. Its cryptic life beneath bark and within insect galleries means that it is probably encountered far less often than it actually occurs.

• The species has also been found at black lights, providing one of the more practical ways of encountering the adult beetles.

Habitat

• Associated with dead and dying trees, fallen branches, bark and galleries made by wood-boring insects.

• Around Zihua, examine loose bark on dead trees and branches, particularly where there are numerous beetle galleries.

• Adults may also be attracted to UV or black lights at night.

• Because the species is extremely cryptic, finding its habitat is much easier than finding the beetle itself.

Size

• Adult length: approximately 4.4–7.1 mm (0.17–0.28 in).

• Body elongated, narrow and somewhat flattened, an excellent shape for moving through bark crevices and insect galleries.

• Generally reddish-brown to dark brown, with a relatively long body and distinctive narrow form.