Beetlex ('bee-tul-lex')

A tiny six-legged insect with a hard shell called a carapace, and long pincer-like fangs that can pierce flesh, but it usually used to chew through wood.

Venom Their venom can kill a person within hours of biting them. However bites are extremely rare and they tend to avoid all contact with people.

Beetlex Evos first into Betlox and then finally into Betrona.

Beetlex will make their home anywhere there is wood. In the woods and forests, they will feed on the trees, usually fallen trees. But they have now started to infest people's homes as well, any that are constructed of wood. They are a large part of the reason most buildings in Almahna are constructed of sandstone, not wood. They appear to be particularly fond of heartwood from Olympus, but they will consume any wood.

Fortunately for the Vikarahn, Highwind is far too cold for them, as they prefer areas that are warm or temperate, and can't really function in cold climates, where they in fact go into hibernation, as they do in the winter in Atlantea.

Beetlex feed on wood of any kind, though seem particularly fond of heartwood from Olympus.

They are an extremely invasive pest species which will spread extremely rapidly. They appear driven to do two things, to feed on wood and to make more of themselves. To this end, they will avoid contact with people as much as they can. In homes, they prefer cool dark areas, such as the basement or cellar, perhaps the attic.

They don't really communicate or coordinate with each other in any way. Each Beetlex acts as a solitary creature.

They were originally native only to Olympus, but in the late Second Age, they began hitching rides on ships bound for Almahna and Atlantea. Once in those areas, they spread extremely quickly and irrevocably damaged the ecosystems in those areas.

Beetlexes are an invasive species and will completely wreck people's homes without a second thought, their only thought being to consume the wood.