Ctenostoma (Neoprocephalus) angustoobliquatum W. Horn 1925
Locality: Native, New World. Costa Rica.
Common Name: Narrowly-oblique Comb-mouthed Beetle
Synonyms: Ctenostoma angusto-obliquatum W. Horn, 1925
Macrohabitat: Lowlands to uplands, 75- 1650 meters altitude, in forests. Microhabitat: Arboreal, on twigs and leaves above the ground. Dispersal abilities: Macropterous, probably capable of flight. Seasonal occurrence: Adults have been found in March- June, and August. Behavior: Arboreal: both canopy and understory of rainforests and tropical moist forests of the Mata Atlantica; some altitude records associated with the Andes and Central America indicate they also occur in cloud forests. These long-legged beetles, many of which are ant-shaped and brachypterous, are found on twigs and foliage in the canopy and understory of moist tropical forests, rain forests, and likely cloud forests; also adults have been found in fogging samples of the tall river-side grass, Gynerium sagittatum (Aubl.) Beauv and stands of the bamboo, Guadua weberbaueri Pilger. Larvae use holes in rotting twigs and perhaps bamboo culms much as other tiger beetle larvae use holes in the ground. Some species make their burrows in the end of broken twigs, others in the lateral surfaces of the twig. The burrows are enlarged as the larva grows. Both adults and larvae are predatory on insects. Although Zikan (1929) reported observations on the way of life of some species in South America, particularly Brazil, the genus remains inadequately known. Naviaux (1998) noted that adults of some species seem to mimic cerambycid beetles; perhaps it is the other way round since all carabids possess well-developed chemical defense systems (pygidial glands and deliverables). (Erwin, 2001; Cassola, 2001; Erwin, 1991; Naviaux, 1998 & 2002; Pearson et al., 1999a, Pearson et al., 1999b, Zikan, 1929, Data from NMNH collection)