Bug FAQRed-bellied Clerid
Enoclerus sphegeus · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Cleridae
The red-bellied clerid is a checkered beetle in the family Cleridae. It lives in Central America and North America. It preys on small insects, especially the bark beetle Dendroctonus ponderosae, feeding on its larvae and eggs. The species pupates underground.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The red-bellied clerid belongs to the checkered beetle family Cleridae.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found across Central America and North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The beetle pupates underground before emerging as an adult.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its range includes Central America and North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 12 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, New Mexico, Montana, Utah, Nevada.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What does the red-bellied clerid eat?
It preys on many small insects and especially feeds on the larvae and eggs of the bark beetle Dendroctonus ponderosae.
Source: Wikipedia
Where can I find a red-bellied clerid?
It occurs in Central America and North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Cleridae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enoclerus_sphegeus
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-27 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-27.