The shell provides many issues for entomologists trying to display their specimen. The diabolical ironclad beetle is like a tiny tank on six legs. Protrusion called blades fit together like jigsaw pieces, glues together by proteins aiding in damage resistance. These beetles are apparently fungivores and associated with rotting wood, and as the common name implies, have one of the hardest of all arthropod exoskeletons; in some species, it is almost impossible to drive an insect pin through their bodies without using a small drill to make a hole first. Content Continues Below. Phloeodes diabolicus (LeConte 1851) Size . The diabolical ironclad beetle is practically indestructible. This one, a species called Phloeodes diabolicus, did not. Meet the Diabolical Ironclad Beetle. [6], "The diabolical ironclad beetle can survive getting run over by a car. Aiding to the structure would be the loss of flight allowing for the hardened elytra to be locked in place with the hindwings. “It allows some of the stress to be dissipated.” Any pressure put on the structure would get distributed throughout the labyrinth, rather than concentrating in a single weak spot. The compression is no longer pointed on one spot but rather spread across the shell evenly distributing the force over the whole shell. Luckily, the flabbergasted father was quick to revise his stance, Dr. Rivera said. “It’s a fail-safe mechanism that nature has found — that’s something we can learn from.”. The diabolical ironclad is not a notorious Civil War-era battleship, but a flightless inch-long beetle that thrives on the United States’ west coast. Diabolical ironclad beetle (Nosoderma diabolicum) in the front and a desert stink beetle (genus Eleodes) in back. If ever there were an insect deserving of superhero status, it’d be the diabolical ironclad beetle. The study found that diabolical ironclad beetles can withstand compression of up to 39,000 times their body weight – a load greater than an adult human can generate by pressing thumb and index finger together, and about 75 percent higher than comparable beetles can handle. Dorsal color can vary from pale brown to … This is done by layering multiple different scales of different sizes, ranging from microscopic to the visible eye sizes, providing the exceptional mechanical strength. The connection allows the blades to absorb impacts without snapping. [4], Utilizing a jigsaw like layering of their joints and appendages provide stability to withstand such extreme forces. On the asphalt of a sun-soaked parking lot, he placed a mottled black beetle on a pillow of dirt and had a colleague run it over with a Toyota Camry. The protection allows the beetle to be almost predator proof, denying most species the ability to break the shell. You may be asking how a beetle could survive being driven over by a car. One impressive example is found in the exoskeletal forewings (elytra) of the diabolical ironclad beetle, Phloeodes diabolicus. So tough, it can survive being run over by a car, The New York Times reported. But the beetles still make an educational splash at local entomology fairs, where Dr. Rivera often does outreach. The ironclad’s exoskeleton, they found, was packed with proteins that seemed to enhance its durability. Native to desert habitats in Southern California, the diabolical ironclad beetle has an exoskeleton that's one of the toughest, most crush-resistant … The back of the beetle are not interlocked in the same way allowing the bottom halves to slide past each other, providing flexibility to absorb squishing compression. “That provides strength at this interface,” Dr. Kisailus said. The diabolical ironclad beetle, a desert bug native to California, can withstand nearly 40,000 times its body weight. Many beetles have a rounded body, but the diabolical ironclad is different, having a flat shape and low to the ground profile makes these beetles extremely tough to squish. PARIS, FRANCE -- Looking like it was forged in apocalyptic fires, the diabolical ironclad beetle has a formidable reputation for being able to withstand being stabbed or run over by a car. Just about any other living thing would be liquefied at the forces this insect can withstand. Content Continues Below. Trending Stories. The impressive armor of these insects, which are found primarily on the west coast of North America, most likely evolved to allow the flightless, fungus-munching bugs to safely wriggle under rocks and fend off the pecks and nips of birds and rodents. 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