Unknown Longicorn from Australia

bugman

December 23rd, 2011 at 8:00 pm

Tags

Longhorm Weevil?
Location: South-East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
November 12, 2011 8:56 pm
Dear BugTeam,
Thank you for such a wonderful site: I often spend hours browsing all the different insects from around the world.
I was wondering if you would be able to help me identify this beetle I found on my washing this (mild November) morning. It looks like a weevil, but the antennae have me stumped: I’ve never seen a weevil with such long, furry antennae before.
Many thanks for your help,
Signature: Jen

Longicorn

Dear Jen,
This is some species of Longicorn or Longhorned Borer Beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It appears to be posing on a fingertip, which would imply that it is quite small. We are having trouble finding a species identification. Your mention of the furry antennae is noteworthy. Though tufted antennae are not rare among Longicorns, they are often a distinguishing feature. We could not find an exact match on the Brisbane Insect website, however, there is one example identified as belonging to the genus Pentacosmia that looks similar to your beetle. Perhaps one of our readers will be able to assist us in this identification.