Bug FAQAtaenius platensis
Ataenius platensis · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Scarabaeidae
Adult Ataenius platensis are tiny beetles about 3.5 to 5 mm long. They have a smooth, elongated body that ranges from light brown to reddish-brown, with usually reddish legs. These beetles live from sea level up to about 1000 m in forest litter and cattle dung across the Caribbean, Central and South America, and North America.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The beetle’s body is elongate-oblong, shiny, and varies from light brown to reddish brown or dark piceous, while its legs are typically reddish.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults measure roughly 3.5 to 5 mm in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found in forest litter and cattle dung from sea level up to about 1000 m.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 15 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Tennessee, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Florida, Alabama, Georgia.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
Where might I encounter Ataenius platensis?
You may find it in forest litter or cattle dung from sea level up to about 1000 m in the Caribbean, Central and South America, and North America.
Source: Wikipedia
What does Ataenius platensis look like?
It has an elongate-oblong, shiny body that ranges from light brown to reddish brown or dark piceous, with usually reddish legs.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Scarabaeidae)
Japanese BeetlePopillia japonicaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Common Green June BeetleCotinis nitidaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Phyllophaga crinitaDamages trees, gardens or crops
European Rose ChaferCetonia aurata
Mediterranean Spotted ChaferOxythyrea funestaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Oriental BeetleExomala orientalisDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ataenius_platensis
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-24.