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62
BULLETIN OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA STATE MUSEUM
Biologist for the Central Nebraska Public
Power and Irrigation District, made the
first discovery of a substantial population
near Gothenburg in 1994 when he collected
40 specimens (Peyton 1994). During the
summer of 1995, Peyton and Jon Bedick
(my research assistant who is conducting
studies on the Gothenburg population of
the American burying beetle) captured more
than 300 specimens. Contrary to the earlier
belief that the insects were associated with
eastern deciduous woodlands, it now seems
that carrion availability (appropriate size as
well as numbers) is more important than the
type of vegetation or soil structure. Habitats
in Nebraska where these beetles have been
recently found consist of grassland prairie,
forest edge, and scrubland (Ratcliffe 1995).
Locality Records (Fig. 106). 332 Nebraska
specimens examined or recorded.
ANTELOPE CO. (1): Neligh; CHERRY CO.
(9): Valentine National Wildlife Refuge, 8
mi. N Valentine National Wildlife Refuge;
CUSTER CO. (1): Milburn; DAWSON CO.
(173): Darr Strip Wildlife Management Area,
Gallagher Canyon, 6 mi. S Gothenburg ,
Midway Lake; FRONTIER CO. (2): 3 mi. S
Farnam; GOSPER CO. (3): Elwood; KEYA
PAHA CO. (4): Jamison, Mills; LANCASTER
Fig. 106. Nebraska distribution of Nicrophorus americanus.
CO. (3): Lincoln; LINCOLN CO. (146): Box
Elder Canyon, Brady, Cottonwood Canyon,
9 mi. S Cozad, Jeffries Canyon, Moran Canyon,
Snell Canyon, Wellfleet, North Platte;
THOMAS CO. (5): Halsey Forest.
Temporal Distribution. Rangewide:
February to September (Peck and Kaulbars
1987). Nebraska: April (1), June (93), July
(107), August (96), September (2), October
(2). One specimen from the Valentine National
Wildlife Refuge was taken on 29 October
1995. It was crawling in the grass, and
the temperature was 42°F! Several inches of
snow had fallen about two weeks earlier.
Remarks. The American burying beetle,
Nicrophorus americanus, is the largest (up to
35 mm) carrion beetle in North America. It is
easily distinguished from other orange banded
species of Nicrophorus by its large size and
by the orange pronotal disc. Males are easily
distinguished by the large, orange rectangle
on the clypeus whereas females have a small,
orange triangle on the clypeus.
Although all the immature stages are
known, none appear to have been formally
described in the literature. My student, Jon
Bedick, and I will be rectifying this by describing
the larval stage in the future.