Cartodere bifasciata

This is a minute scavenger beetle sometimes called a mould beetle, and measures little more than 2 mm in length. The elytra are gold-brown in colour and are marked with a darker patterning of large dot like blotches. The elytra are also studded with rows of dimples.

Often found in leaf litter.

All year round but best from spring to autumn.

Fairly common with scattered records from across England and Wales it is probably under recorded due to its diminutive size.

Fairly common in Leicestershire and Rutland. There were a total of 123 VC55 records for this species up to March 2015.