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South African Longhorned Borer Beetle: Phantasis species

South African Beetle, slightly larger than a dung beetle
March 26, 2010
Seen on roadway in Kruger National Park, slightly larger than standard Dung Beetle
Norm Arnett
South Africa

unknown beetle south africa norm 300x221 South African Longhorned Borer Beetle: Phantasis species

Longicorn: Phantasis species

Dear Norm,
This is quite an unusual beetle.  We believe it is one of the Longhorned Beetles in the family Cerambycidae, though we would love corroboration from someone with more experience.  We will contact Eric Eaton to see what he thinks.

Hi, Daniel:
Thanks for making my day:-)  I’m really suffering from allergies right now, and without health insurance I can’t get my Allegra!  A-a-a-a-a-CHOO!  Your questions always take my mind off whatever is ailing me….
Yes, the beetle from Africa is definitely in the Cerambycidae family.  I think I even have a genus for you:  Phantasis.  See this link, it looks just like the female (the one on the right in this image):
http://www.cerambycoidea.com/foto.asp?Id=1352
Really neat find.
Keep up the great work Daniel:-)
Eric
P.S.  Hey, next year, when your book is out, we should go in on a table at the Bug Fair and do signings!

Update
April 24, 2010
Were you ever able to find anything more on this unusual beetle? I couldn’t match it to any photos of Cerambycidae.
Thanks,
Norm Arnett

Dear Norm,
Sometimes we are unable to write back multiple times to answer requests.  Had you revisited our website, you would have found that your beetle was identified.

THank you for that! sorry to have bothered you. I misunderstood your earlier reply and mistakenly assumed that you would respond directly.

Dear Norm,
There is no need to apologize.  Like we indicated earlier, we try to give personal responses as well as posting letters to the website, but followups are sometimes quite difficult because we have to search through the numerous emails we receive to track down the sender’s address.


Posted 28 March 2010 § Longhorn Beetles ‡ Comments (0) °
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Leaf Beetle from New Zealand

1cm likes fruit not grass or strawberry leaves
March 26, 2010
End of March (so we’re in autumn), and it’s been 5 degrees (c) warmer than usual here (25C or so).
My son noticed the brown / red 1cm long bug in our local icecream shop and brought it home.
Gave it a piece of plum and it seemed interested in it. It has biting mouth parts.
We’ve seen black feathery ends to wings under the back cover but haven’t seen it fly.
It can move quite quickly but not so quickly that it is easy to loose when on your finger.
Walks around the container we have it in constantly during the day. Not sure what happens at night.
It got out of it’s container yesterday evening but was found 1m away this morning so it’s not travelling too far.
We live in a commercial port town with lots of container work so know people who have seen non-native species before.
The local folks we’ve shown the bug to, including ourselves, have never noticed a buglike this in New Zealand.
Would love to know what you think it might be.
Many thanks
DM
Lyttelton, New Zealand

leaf beetle new zealand dm 300x270 Leaf Beetle from New Zealand

Leaf Beetle

Dear DM,
We are certain that this is a Leaf Beetle in the family Chrysomelidae, and it is probably in the subfamily Chrysomelinae.  It most closely resembles the Eucalyptus Leaf Beetles in the genus Chrysophtharta or possibly Paropsisterna, though we have not had success with a perfect visual match on the Brisbane Insect website which indicates the two genera have been combined by stating:  “The genus Paropsisterna has been recently expanded to include Chrysophtharta. They are native to Australia and New Guinea. There are more than a hundred species in this genus in Australia.“  The closest match is the Marble Leaf Beetle, Paropsisterna semifumata, but it is not exact.

leaf beetle new zealand dm 2 288x300 Leaf Beetle from New Zealand

Leaf Beetle

Posted 27 March 2010 § Leaf Beetles ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

Flat-Head Borer

Larva state, boring into birch and other trees, not termite!
March 25, 2010
Recently I’ve been tracking penetrations of various trees within our yard. These penetrations have been through scars or lower elevation entry.
Recently I removed another section of birch of what was originally a 4-cluster tree, and now only 2-remain.
The holes are much larger than any termite hole. Once the tree was dissected, I came upon a large headed-to-body ratio larva, whitish in color, some-what segmented. approx lenght 1.” to 1.25″
At a loss and trees are not cheap??
erick at www.ameriturfsystems.com
Back yard tree larva
So-California, inland 20-miles

buprestid larva erick 300x248 Flat Head Borer

Flat-Head Borer Larva

Hi erick,
This is the larva of a Metallic Wood Boring Beetle, known as a Flat-Head Borer, in the family Buprestidae.  See BugGuide for more.  Some adults are lovely beetles with bright coloration that are called Jewel Beetles.  Sorry we cannot be more specific as to the species.

buprestid larva erick 2 300x199 Flat Head Borer

Flat-Head Borer Larva

Posted 26 March 2010 § Grubs § Metallic Borer Beetles ‡ Comments (0) °
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Red Net Winged Beetles Mating

Who are these?
March 24, 2010
I found these in the woods near a creek.
ludwigsbestfriend
Stokes County, NC

red netwinged beetles mating 257x300 Red Net Winged Beetles Mating

Mating Red Net Winged Beetles

Dear ludwigsbestfriend,
What a lovely image of mating Red Net Winged Beetles, Dictyopterus aurora.  You can see additional images on BugGuide.

Dear Daniel,
Wow!  Thanks so much for naming my mystery beetle!  Do you stay up all night answering people’s emails with crazy bug questions?
Regards,
Sally

Hi Sally,
We answer letters when we are able.  We also sleep when we can, but our schedule is sometimes erratic.

Posted 25 March 2010 § Net-Winged Beetles ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

June Beetle from China

Blue-Eyed Golden June Bug
March 24, 2010
I sent you some photos of this odd looking Chinese insect a few days ago. Did you get them? I swear, it’s not a Photoshop job. It has eyes like Paul Newman and more gold leaf than a temple. What is this thing? I have dozens more photos. Let me know if you want them. Thanks!
Mike J.
Dongguan, China

june beetle china mike 300x225 June Beetle from China

Unknown June Beetle

Dear Mike,
We did not see your earlier submission.  We are not certain of the species, but we will post your June Beetle in the hopes that one of our readers can make an identification.

Hi Daniel,
Thanks for your reply. Here are the shots I originally submitted and the corresponding text.
Hope you can figure it out. There are lots of these guys flying around here in the evening; similar to Junebugs back in the US midwest.
Mike

Beetles in China
I see these frequently in South China. They fly in the evening like June Bugs. The golden shell, big blue eyes and fern-like feelers are pretty cool. This guy found his way inside tonight. Wouldn’t let him leave without some photos. Thought you’d enjoy these.
Mike J.
Dongguan, China

june beetle china 2 mike 300x187 June Beetle from China

Unknown June Beetle

Posted 24 March 2010 § Scarab Beetles ‡ Comments (1) ° Tagged:

Master Blister Beetle

Anza Borrego Bug
March 23, 2010
Greetings,
I came across this bug while hiking in the Anza Borrego State Park, near the Salton Sea, in Southern California in the afternoon of March 13th, 2010.It was about 100 yards from a blooming Ocotillo plant. I found it quite beautiful and would like it identified. Your help would be much appreciated.
Ashley Bacon
Anza Borrego State Park, Southern California

master blister ashley 296x300 Master Blister Beetle

Master Blister Beetle

Hi Ashley,
Each spring, we get reports of sightings of Lytta magister, the Master Blister Beetle, from the Mojave and Colorado deserts in California and Arizona.  Though BugGuide reports them from Nevada and Utah as well, we have not received any reports from those states.  Your photo is the first one this year.  Blister Beetles are a diverse family with numerous species living in the desert areas of the Southwest.  Generally the adults are seen each year for a short period of time, usually in the spring when they feed on new plant growth.  The larvae are parasitic on grasshopper eggs or the eggs of solitary bees.

Posted 23 March 2010 § Blister Beetles ‡ Comments (1) °

Unknown Australian Darkling Beetle

March 20, 2010
HI Please can you tell me what type of beetle this is please, iv have only just started getting interested in
bug and insects I’m a cub scout leader so i would like to show the cubs all the pics i take and tel them
about the fly or bug thank you. The beetle was found at Joondalup lake.
many thanks
Stephanie Nolson

unknown click beetle australia 300x218 Unknown Australian Darkling Beetle

Unknown Darkling Beetle

Hi Stephanie,
Before we could even attempt to answer your question, we needed to research where on the planet Joondalup lake is found, and we now know that it is near Perth in Western Australia.  We thought your beetle looked like a Click Beetle in the family Elateridae, but it is shorter and stouter than most members of that family.  We found some images that are also unidentified on the Life Unseen website page of Australian Click Beetles.  We may be totally wrong, but that is our best guess at the moment.

Daniel:
Definitely a darkling beetle, family Tenebrionidae.  Beyond that I can’t help much, not being very familiar with the Australian fauna.  I will, however, happily accept a year or two sabbatical, expenses paid, to study the insects and arachnids there:-)
Eric

Posted 21 March 2010 § Darkling and Ironclad Beetles ‡ Comments (5) ° Tagged: ,

Kiawe Round Headed Borer from Hawaii

spotted flying insect with red legs
March 18, 2010
On a visit to Hanauma Bay on Oahu last summer, I took a picture of a bug I havent seen before. This was my first and last time seeing this creature. I think the bug was about 2-3cm long.
curious
hawaii

kiawe roundheaded borer hawaii 300x170 Kiawe Round Headed Borer from Hawaii

Kiawe Round Headed Borer

Dear curious,
Two months ago we received a letter with a photo, and we identified a pair of mating Kiawe Round Headed Borers, Placosternus crinicornis, the same species depicted in your photograph.  Like many creatures on Hawaii, the Kiawe Round Headed Borer is not native, and it can be found on the Invasive Species website.

Posted 18 March 2010 § Longhorn Beetles ‡ Comments (0) ° Tagged:

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