Family: Silphidae
Subfamily: Silphinae
Length: 10-14 mm
In Oiceoptoma noveboracense the pronotum is black with salmon-colored edges, its surface punctate and with some yellow setae. The elytra are brown to black and sharply ridged. On males the elytral apex is rounded, while on females it is more gradually tapered.
Adults overwinter and reproduction begins in the Spring. Apparently there is one generation per year in West Virginia. Reproduction, from mating to the new adults emerging from the pupa, takes approximately forty-five days. As with most other Nearctic species in this family, the larvae feed on carrion and adults usually feed on the larvae of flies that are feeding on carrion.
This is a diurnal species.
Insects of West Virginia
