A very small (5 mm) Rove Beetle. It is shaped like a tear drop with the head at the wider end. It has a blackish body with a wide red central band.

A ground dwelling species, often found in ants nests in damp rotting stumps and fallen branches, also found in leaf litter, grass roots moss etc.

Peak activity is in summer

Associated with ants nests.

Under recorded but believed to be common throughout lowland Britain

Fairly common in Leicestershire and Rutland. There were a total of 104 VC55 records for this species up to March 2015.