Bug FAQZopherus nodulosus
Zopherus nodulosus · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Zopheridae
Adults are 1.4 to 2.8 cm long and 0.5 to 1.1 cm wide, with a blotchy black-and-white body and fully black legs. They live in East and Central Texas and are native to Central America and North America. They probably eat lichen and dead plant material, and females lay eggs on American elms while larvae develop in pecan wood.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The beetle’s body shows a blotchy black-and-white pattern and its legs are completely black.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Length ranges from about 1.4 cm to 2.8 cm, and width from 0.5 cm to 1.1 cm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found in East and Central Texas.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Females lay eggs on American elm trees, and the larvae and pupae develop inside pecan wood.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its native range includes Central America and North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 4 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Florida, Kansas, California.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What does Zopherus nodulosus look like?
It has a blotchy black-and-white pattern on its body and fully black legs.
Source: Wikipedia
Where can I find this beetle?
It occurs in East and Central Texas and is native to Central America and North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Zopheridae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zopherus_nodulosus
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.