Members of this family are characterised by an extremely flattened body, which represents a perfect evolutionary adaptation for moving through the narrow spaces beneath the bark of both coniferous and deciduous trees. These beetles are found primarily in the temperate to boreal zones of the Northern Hemisphere (Eurasia, North America), with a single genus also present in tropical America and Australia. Both larvae and adults are closely associated with decaying or dead wood. These are typical saproxylic species – indicators of near-natural, predominantly coniferous forests with an abundance of decaying wood. Their way of life is inextricably linked to cold boreal forests, and they currently belong to species whose occurrence is threatened in many countries by intensive forestry practices.

Number of Species:

Family Card

Pytho abieticola

 

Pytho depressus