COLEOPTERA > POLYPHAGA > CLEROIDEA > Dasytidae

Formerly a subfamily of the Melyridae (as confirmed on the following page), Dasytidae is now treated as a separate family of just nine species. There are two subfamilies, Rhadalinae with a single genus and two species that are more associated with shrubs and trees, and the retained Dasytinae with three genera and seven varied species that typically occur on flowers from early spring.

Realistically though, there are only two species that are likely to be found locally as the others are all scarce and mostly confined to more eastern counties. Dasytes aeratus is by far the most common and widespread species even if it has relatively few official records. In fact, there have been no reported sightings from Dorset in recent years, yet I was able to find two as featured below. The other is Psilothrix viridicoerulea, an attractive bright bluish-green metallic beetle that could be confused with one of the oedemirid false blister beetle species. There's only an outside chance, but there have been previous records from my general area even if they were many years ago.

Dasytes aeratus occurs mostly in deciduous woodland, parkland or hedges bordering agricultural land. They feed on pollen from a range of flowering trees and shrubs. They are small, barely 5mm long, rather drab with an entirely black, densely pubescent body with a weak metallic reflection. The head across the eyes is narrower than the pronotum, which is quadrate in form and broadest in the basal half. The elytra is elongate with well-developed shoulders and separately rounded apically with the suture diverging. The legs are long and thin, and entirely black, which distinguishes them from other Dasytes species that have pale tibiae and tarsi. The male of the species has much larger eyes than the female and notably longer and thinner antennae.

New family added, May 22 (v.1)