Oiceoptoma noveboracense

Classification

 
    Domain: Eukaryota
    Kingdom: Animalia
    Phylum: Arthropoda      
    Class: Insecta
    Order: Coleoptera
    Family: Silphidae
    Genus: Oiceoptoma
    Species: Oiceoptoma noveboracense

 

Domain: Eukaryota
O. noveboracense’s belongs to this domain because they have membrane-bound nuclei and organelles.  Eukaryota is a very broad classification, for it includes organisms ranging from cow patty mushrooms, passionfruit, and
blue whales (Campbell et. al. 2008).

 
Kingdom: Animalia
This organism is part of Animalia because it is multicellular, motile, heterotrophic, and its cells lack cell walls (Campbell et. al. 2008).
 
Phylum: ArthropodaAnimalia phylogenetic treeO. noveboracense under view
An organism in the phylum Arthropoda produces embryos that have three tissue types: an endoderm, ectoderm, and mesoderm.  They are bilaterally symmetrical and have structures for feeding, sensing their environment, and processing information.  Arthropods are protostomes, which means that their mouth develops before the anus.  And finally, they are ecdysozoans so their shells molt in order for the organism to grow larger.  O. noveboracense fulfills all these requirements, placing it in this phylum (Campbell et. al. 2008).  The phylogeny to the right clearly shows where arthropods can be found within the kingdom Animalia.

Class: Insecta
O. noveboracense has three pairs of legs and one pair of antennae.  They also have a segmented body with a head, thorax, and abdomen.  Those are all characteristic of an organism in this class (Encylopedia of Life 2012).
 
Order: Coleoptera
An insect in the order Coleoptera hardens their forewings into elytra. The name “Coleoptera” literally means “sheathed wings” (koleos= sheath, pteron=wings). These elytra serve to protect hind wings as well as the dorsal surface of the abdomen. O. noveboracense also does this which is why they belong to this order (Encyclopedia of Life 2012). A few other beetles that landed a spot in this order include the rove beetle, rainbow scarab beetle and dung beetles (Bug Guide 2012).
 
Family: Silphidae
This organism breeds at large carcasses and shows little to no parental care.  Their larvae also bear a cluster of six stemmata on each side of the head.  For those reasons, O. noveboracense is placed into the family Silphidae (Encyclopedia of Life 2012).              

Genus: Oiceoptoma 

The phylogenetic tree directly to the left indicates where Oiceoptoma is placed with relation to other genuses within the family Silphidae.

 

Species: Oiceoptoma noveboracense
The larvae of this species range from being a light brown to a dark reddish color.  They are generally flat and are capable of moving during development (Oiceoptoma noveboracense, a member of Carrion Beetles 2013). When the organism becomes an adult, they are either dark-brown or black in color.  The outer margins of the pronotum are outlined in a bright orange-red color which make them easy to distinguish (Oiceoptoma noveboracense, a member of Carrion Beetles 2013).  They grow to be between ten to fourteen millimeters in length (Bug Guide 2012).  The elytra apex on the female adult are tapered and on the male adult they are more rounded (Oiceoptoma noveboracense, a member of Carrion Beetles 2013).

 

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