[2] The oldest known fossil from this genus was found in Eocene Baltic amber, estimated to be from 38.0 to 33.9 million years ago.

Ampedus females attract males for mating through chemical communication, using specialized pheromone glands,[4] and lay their eggs in fallen wood to develop.

The ninth abdominal segment, which varies in shape between elaterid larvae, is rounded in this genus, ending in a sharp point.

[5] The genus was originally named by the French entomologist Pierre François Marie Auguste Dejean in 1833, previously Elater.

[6] One taxonomic study of the genera within the tribe Ampedini, which used nuclear and mitochondrial data, found monophyly of Ampedus to be highly supported.