Beetles

Beetles are a group of insects which have the major number of species. They are placed in the order Coleoptera, which means "covered wing" and contains more described species than in any other order in the animal kingdom, constituting about twenty-five percent of all known life-forms.[1] Forty percent of all described insect species are beetles (about 350,000 species[1]), and new species are repeatedly discovered. Estimates put the total number of species, described and undescribed, at between 5 and 8 million.

Beetles can be found in almost all habitats, but are not known to occur in the sea or in the polar regions. They work together with their ecosystems in several ways. They often use to eat plants and fungi, break down animal and plant debris, and feed other invertebrates. Some species are victim of various animals including birds and mammals. Certain species are agricultural pests, such as the Colorado potato beetle Leptinotarsa decemlineata, the boll weevil Anthonomus grandis, the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, and the mungbean or cowpea beetle Callosobruchus maculatus, while other species of beetles are important controls of agricultural pests. For example, coccinellidae ("ladybirds" or "ladybugs") consume aphids, scale insects, thrips, and other plant-sucking insects that destroy the crops.