Blaps

Genus of nocturnal black beetles. They are found in outbuildings and cellars; and are commonly known as churchyard beetles.

Blaps species are responsible for the transmission of a nematode parasite among sheep, cattle, and other ungulates. The parasitic nematode, Gongylonema pulchrum, is ingested by the dung-feeding species of Blaps, and infests an animal when it swallows the beetle.

Classification Blaps belongs to the family Tenebrionidae, order Coleoptera, class Insecta, phylum Arthropoda.