Species Insects & ArthropodsAmerican Carrion Beetle

American Carrion Beetle

Necrophila americana

CommonInsect & Arthropod
Illustration of American Carrion Beetle (Necrophila americana)

The American Carrion Beetle is a large, easily identified beetle with a broad, flat yellow pronotum marked with a black central spot and black elytra. It is one of the most common carrion beetles in eastern North America and arrives at carcasses quickly after death. Unusually, the larvae also consume the fly maggots that share the carcass.

Habitat
Forests, fields, and anywhere vertebrate carrion occurs
Diet
Adults and larvae: carrion and fly maggots on carcasses
How common
Common

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