Saudi Beetle

Unknown Jewel Beetle

Saudi Beetle
Location: Khamis Mushayt/Abha, Saudi Arabia
November 27, 2010 5:17 am
My coworkers and I found this outside our shop and were wanting to know what this is, we have seen many bugs before and this is a new one. Its about 2 inches long, iridescent, large eyes, short antaneeas, and yellow and black stripes on the underside. It was found in Khamis Mushayt/Abha Region of Saudi Arabia.
Signature: Jeremy

Unknown Jewel Beetle

Hi Jeremy,
This is a Metallic Wood Boring Beetle or Jewel Beetle in the family Buprestidae.  We will try to do additional research to see if we are able to provide a species identification as well.

Unknown Jewel Beetle

Update: November 28, 2010
Hi Daniel:
I found a little time today so I though I would catch up on my favourite website.  I think this is another one of those large and spectacular Jewel Beetles in the genus Steraspis (Buprestidae: Chrysochroinae). I believe this one is probably Steraspis speciosa. Except for the colour, it is quite similar to S. squamosa that appeared on WTB? on September 7, 2010. In response to that posting I provided a link to an excellent paper by Gianfranco Curletti (2009), which provides numerous excellent photos and an identification key in English (unfortunately the rest of the paper is in Italian). Using Jeremy’s excellent photos I was able to follow the key to S. speciosa arabica (look for Figure 11 at the end of the paper), which appears to be endemic to the Arabian Peninsula. The closely related S. speciosa speciosa occurs across Saharan Africa in is a vivid green.  Regards.  Karl

Thanks so much for all your extensive research Karl.

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Colorfull Cockroach
Location:  Panama Central America – Summer
September 30, 2010 4:52 pm
Well, I was amazed about this type of cockroach so, I would like to know if it is a cockroach or what because I know you guys will be also interested about checking out this type of bug.
Thanks please answer fast
Maybe is a new kind of cockroach not discovered yet.
Patrick
Signature:  Colorfull Cockroach

Giant Metallic Ceiba Borer Beetle

Dear Patrick,
This is not a Cockroach.  It is a Jewel Beetle or Metallic Borer Beetle in the family Buprestidae.  We will try to research the species tomorrow morning.

Giant Metallic Ceiba Borer Beetle

October 1, 2010 at 5:30 AM
After a good night’s sleep, we quickly located a visual match to your Giant Metallic Ceiba Borer, Euchroma gigantea, on the God of Insects website which has this wealth of information:  “Euchroma gigantea is the largest of the Jewel Beetles in the New World – and also one of the most attractive. In fact, its Latin namesake translates to ‘colorful giant.’ Newly emerged adults will have a coating of yellow wax dust, which obscures their metallic colors until worn off. This wax is only secreted once and often mistaken for pollen. The larvae are miners of fallen timber (Ceiba pentandra, Bombacopsis spp. and Pseudobombax spp.) and the adults may be found walking around on the logs. This large beetle is a strong flier and is often attracted to freshly cut trees. It’s common name is the Ceiba Borer and in forests where species of trees in the family Bombacaceae (such as Kapok trees) can be found, it is fairly common. The adult beetles, when available, are roasted and eaten by the Tzeltal-Mayans of Chiapas, Mexico. The beautiful elytra are often used in jewelery and the adornment of textiles. The Shaur [sic] (Jivaro) people of the Amazon Jungle use the beetle to make decorative ornaments symbolizing wealth, well being and personal power. They refer to the beetles’ elytra as ‘wauwau.’“ Your specimen still has the yellow waxy coating, and images of mounted specimens which abound on the world wide web have that coating removed to better reveal the gorgeous metallic coloration of the Giant Metallic Ceiba Borer.  We did locate a nice website, Beetles in the Bush, which profiles the Giant Metallic Ceiba Borer and has a photo of a newly emerged adult with the waxy coating.  According to Beetles in the Bush, the range of the Giant Metallic Ceiba Borer is “Mexico through Central America, the West Indies, and most of South America.  At a maximum of 65mm in length, it is not only North America’s largest jewel beetle, but also the largest jewel beetle in the entire Western Hemisphere.“ That source also mentions the edibility thus:  “Indigenous peoples in Central and South America have long utilized the dazzlingly colored elytra of these beetles to create beautiful natural jewelry and adorn their clothes and textiles.  The species is also eaten in both the larval and adult stages – Tzeltal-Mayans in southern Mexico (Chiapas) roast the adults when available, and the Tukanoans (northwestern Amazon) also eat the larvae (Dufour 1987).“ We will check with our friend Susan Lutz who spent time with the Shuar in Ecuador to see if she can provide any information on how the Ecuadorean head-shrinkers use the elytra of the Giant Metallic Ceiba Borer and also to see if they are on the menu for the Shuar version of Sunday Dinner.

Ed. Note: Read Susan Lutz’s response here.

Camoflaged bug
June 30, 2010
Dear Bugman,
I found this bug crawling around in a ditch, too. It seemed to match the dirt around it. Very slow moving and no larger than an inch long. Any idea what it is? Thanks,
James R
Fairfield, Maine, USA

Ribbed Pine Borer

Hi James,
We do not recognize your beetle, but we are posting your letter and photos while we attempt to identify it.  We are starting with Checkered Beetles in the family Cleridae on BugGuide.

Ribbed Pine Borer

Ed. Note: Thanks to Mardikavana, we now know that this is a Ribbed Pine Borer, Rhagium inquisitor, and it is profiled on BugGuide.

Eric Eaton concurs
Daniel:
Sorry, been out in the field all day (one of the few luxuries of unemployment).
The beetle is the “Ribbed Pine Borer,” Rhagium inquisitor, in the longhorned beetle family Cerambycidae.  I know!  Bears little resemblance to the average ‘bycid!  This species is “holarctic,” meaning it is found in the entire northern hemisphere.
Eric

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What’s this bug?
April 24, 2010
I found two of these eating there way out of an old tree stump. As soon as they ate there way up they sat on the log for awhile drying their wings I presume then flew off. They are a beautiful color of greens and golds.
Patti
Groveland, CA

Golden Buprestid

Dear Patti,
Congratulations on witnessing the emergence of two Golden Buprestids, Buprestis aurulenta, from their larval home. Golden Buprestids are in the family Buprestidae, and those family members are collectively called Jewel Beetles or Metallic Borer Beetles.  The larval stage may last many years, and there are records of adults emerging from previously milled lumber long after the trees were cut.  According to our frequent contributor Eric Eaton:  “The record age for one is an adult that emerged from a baseboard(?) in a Canadian building fully 51 years after the building was erected! Why milled lumber forces such an extended life cycle in woodborers is a mystery, at least as far as I know. Normally, the life cycle would be no more than 2-5 years.“