How to Identify Beetle Species

If you are traipsing around in the woods or hanging out in your backyard, take a few minutes to make some observations about some of the insects, plants and other natural components of your location. You may discover some new plant or insect species, such as a beetle, which you have never seen. Take the next step in familiarizing yourself with your surroundings by identifying the species using a field book. As you become more aware of your surroundings, you may find that you feel more closely connected with the environment and its organisms.

Things You'll Need

  • Digital camera
  • Insect field book
  • Computer with Internet access
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Instructions

    • 1

      Take a photograph of the beetle using your digital camera. If the camera has a macro mode, get a close-up picture of the beetle for identification purposes. Make notes regarding the size of the beetle. Look around the area to see if there are any other beetles with similar markings to see if you can find a large adult version of your beetle species.

    • 2

      Note the size and shape of the beetle's antenna, segments, mouth parts and ventral characteristics which include the sterna, pleura and coxae. According to the Dichotomous Keys to Some Families of Florida Coleoptera, noting the size and color of beetle specimens alone may not be useful in identifying the type of beetle due to the large number of family groups and species found in the diverse numbers of beetles in America.

    • 3

      Use an insect field guide to look up the beetle.

    • 4

      Visit your local university's biology department. Talk to or e-mail a professor of ecology, zoology or natural history who may be able to identify the beetle based on the digital picture. Visit a nature center to find a field researcher or natural-history expert who can help identify your beetle species.

    • 5

      Post a picture of the beetle on the forum for various Internet sites such as BugGuide or Dave's Garden, which allows experts and other insect-identifying hobbyists to interact and dialogue about hard-to-identify insect species.