Slender Small Dung Beetle

Ataenius gracilis · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Scarabaeidae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Slender Small Dung Beetle
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0

The slender small dung beetle, Ataenius gracilis, belongs to the scarab family (Scarabaeidae). Adults are tiny, measuring about 2.8 to 3.5 mm long. It occurs in parts of Canada and the United States as well as many countries throughout Central and South America and the Caribbean.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Ataenius gracilis is the scientific name for the slender small dung beetle, a member of the scarab family.

Source: Wikipedia

Size

Adults reach a length of roughly 2.8 to 3.5 mm (about 0.11 to 0.14 in).

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

Its broader native range includes many Neotropical countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and numerous Caribbean islands.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it is found in the US

Recorded in 28 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Arizona, South Carolina, Florida, Kansas, Texas, Nebraska, Louisiana, Illinois.

Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.

Source: GBIF

Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist

Months it is reported in the US

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Source: GBIF

More photos

Slender Small Dung Beetle photo 2
Photo: iNaturalist user, CC0

Same family (Scarabaeidae)

Japanese BeetleJapanese BeetlePopillia japonicaDamages trees, gardens or cropsCommon Green June BeetleCommon Green June BeetleCotinis nitidaDamages trees, gardens or cropsPhyllophaga crinitaPhyllophaga crinitaPhyllophaga crinitaDamages trees, gardens or cropsEuropean Rose ChaferEuropean Rose ChaferCetonia aurataMediterranean Spotted ChaferMediterranean Spotted ChaferOxythyrea funestaDamages trees, gardens or cropsOriental BeetleOriental BeetleExomala orientalisDamages trees, gardens or crops

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ataenius_gracilis

Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia

Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-24.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

Every fact on Bug FAQ comes from a named source (university extension sites, government agencies, GBIF, iNaturalist, Wikipedia). The source is linked next to each section. If we have no source for something, we leave it out.