Giant Carrion Beetle (American Burying Beetle)
Nicrophorus americanus Olivier

Status: State Endangered (August, 1989), Federally Endangered (July, 1989)

Occurence: There are no known populations of the giant carrion beetle (American burying beetle) in Wisconsin. The last recorded observation was in 1953 in LaCrosse County.

Aid to ID: The largest of 15 species of Nicrophorus in North America. Adults are up to 1.4 inches (36mm) long and distinctive for the red-orange pronotum and red on the face. The body is shiny black with two pairs of red-orange scalloped markings on the wing covers (elytra) and orange antennal clubs. Most collected specimens have been caught at light traps.

Habitat: The giant carrion beetle was originally found across 35 states in landscapes of various soil types in mowed and grazed fields, prairie, dense shrub thickets and deciduous forest. The beetle has been found most recently in the Great Plains region in undisturbed forest edge, scrubland, and grassland habitats. Carrion availability in a given area rather than habitat is probably the greatest limiting factor.

Management Considerations: The species has been in decline across the range since the early part of the century and is currently found in only four states. Contributing factors probably include the need for carrion the size of doves or chipmunks (loss of the passenger pigeon has been mentioned), fragmentation of habitat affecting prey species, and creation of edge supporting competitive vertebrate scavengers.

The content for this page was originally presented in the Endangered and Threatened Invertebrates of Wisconsin, a free publication available by contacting the Endangered Resources Program.