Did you know that there are more species of Coleoptera (the
order of beetles) than any other animal order? And there are
more species in the beetle family Curculionidae (weevils) than
any other family of animals! There is a famous quote from the
biologist JSB Haldane that, after all his years of studying
nature, one thing he had learned about the creator was that he
had an “inordinate fondness for beetles.” Hey, so do I! This is
one thing we have in common. Beetles are built like tanks…their
front two wings have been modified into hard shells called
‘elytra’, which lock together when closed, sealing the fragile
membranous wings and the delicate abdomen within a hard casing.
When a beetle locks down, it tucks its antennae into grooves,
pulls it’s legs under its body and becomes practically
untouchable. The beetle has to hold its heavy elytra up when
flying, and they make it difficult for a beetle to fly well
(especially compared to, say, a fly), which is why it is so easy
to snatch a beetle out of the air. Whe