Beautiful Beetle
October 28, 2009
As we live in the southern hemisphere, we are currently in the midst of spring with summer close at hand. For us, this means we will be seeing more and more bugs (woo-hoo). That being said, my kids and I found this beautiful beetle early this morning on the sidewalk outside their school. We immediately rescued it so that it would not get stepped on by the students. I let it walk around the palm of my hand so that we could let my children’s classmates admire it as well. It is a beautiful shiny hard-shelled beetle. When walking, it does so quite quickly, but remains fairly still for the most part. It is about an inch and a half from the tip of it’s nose to the tip of its rear, and the antennas add about another half an inch to its overall length, with a thickness of abo ut a quarter of an inch. I have searched and searched but I cannot identify what type of beetle it is. Any ideas? Another interesting note: Shortly after I returned home and placed it on a branch to retrieve my camera, it slowly and deliberately excreted something onto the branch from the tip of it’s rear. It would slowly move forward bit by bit as it attached the excretion to the branch. The beetle then ‘patted’ it to be certain it was firmly attached to the branch. The excretion is tan in color, about a quarter by an eighth of an inch, and has an oval-rounded shape to it. It resembles a very flattened rolly polly with a clearish tan coating over it. Could this be a single larvae? Thanks for anything you might be able to tell us about this wonderful creature.
Todd Madsen
Sao Paulo, Brazil
Unidentified Beetle from Brazil
Hi Todd,
We are requesting assistance with your beetle. Our initial impression is that it is a Leaf Beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. We hope Eric Eaton can verify that.
Unidentified Beetle from Brazil
Daniel:
Right on! Yes, it is indeed a leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae, subfamily Hispinae. Many are leaf miners, but I can’t imagine this large species being one of them:-)
Eric
Karl locates some images online
Hi Daniel:
Everyone is right! Following Eric’s lead, the genus is Coraliomela (Hispinae: Alurnini). But there are several species in that genus in Brazil and there is very little information to be found, so that is likely as close as we are going to get. Chances are that at least some look quite similar (e.g., C. tetramaculata). Regarding the behavior described by Todd, I would guess the beetle was laying eggs – I can’t think what else it may have been doing. From what I could gather, some and perhaps all Coraliomela species feed on palms; the larvae of C. brunnea (an entirely red species), for example, are considered one of Brazil’s most important pests on coconut seedlings. I can’t tell if the plant in Todd’s photo is a palm. Regards.
Karl
Lovely Bug
October 26, 2009
These guys show up every year when the figs are ripe (July-Aug). About an inch long and maybe 5/8 thick. They usually mass on one fig and leave it in tatters.
Kenneth Magnone
90066 (West Los Angeles)
Figeaters eating Figs
Hi Kenneth,
We are so excited that you have sent us a photo of Figeaters eating Figs. Figeaters are also known as Green Fruit Beetles.
What is this thing?
October 25, 2009
I found this bug on the edge of my fishtank. It is now October 25th.
Tree C.
Central Florida
Nut or Acorn Weevil, we believe
Hi Tree C.,
This is a Weevil, a member of the largest family of Beetles. Often exact identification from a photo is impossible. That said, we believe this is a Nut Weevil or Acorn Weevil in the Tribe Curculionini. There are several images that look similar on BugGuide, but they are not identified to the species level.
Nut Weevil or Acorn Weevil, probably
¶ Posted 25 October 2009 § Weevils ‡ ° Who is this death muncher?
October 24, 2009
I’ve seen these guys a couple of times, the first time I ever saw them was among other bugs voraciously consuming a mole corpse who’s death had been basking in the summer heat for at least two days. They were the dominant insect in and on that corpse. His thorax reminds me Roman muscle armor… What is this odd little guy?
Eric, The Wild Man
willamette valley, along the columbia river. Oregon
Sexton Beetle
Hi Eric,
This is one of the Burying Beetles in the genus Nicrophorus that are known as Sexton Beetles. We expect it is the highly variable Nicrophorus defodiens. BugGuide has a nice array of images with some individuals possessing bold spotting, and others with subtle spotting like your specimen. Burying Beetles often work in pairs, burying small dead creatures, laying eggs on the carcass.
Christmas Beetle
October 19, 2009
I found a group of christmas beetles in my garden and i want to feed them but i don’t know what! I tried feeding them leaves but they didn’t like them, what should i feed them?
Karmen xo
South Coast, Corrimal
Christmas Beetle
Dear Karmen xo,
Christmas Beetles are Scarab Beetles in the genus Anoplognathus as well as some other closely related genera. They are considered to be leaf or flower chafers. A Christmas Beetle website we located indicates “Christmas beetles are voracious eaters and are capable of attacking a wide range of eucalypts and other tree species” and “Christmas beetles often show a preference for particular species, even individual trees within a species.“ If you found the beetles on a particular plant, you should try feeding them from the leaves of that plant.
Orange Asturalian scarab
October 17, 2009
I have seen these beetles often when camping in Cobram, Victoria, Australia.
it didn’t move for at least an hour, i never actually saw it moving other than noticing that it had moved when i was gone. this happened a few times before it disappeared. It has a colour changing sheen (mainly blue and green) depending on the angle you look at it. The beetle itself is orange.
Matt Molloy
Victoria Australia
- Christmas Beetle
Hi Matt,
This is one of the Scarab Beetles known as Christmas Beetles in Australia because of their seasonal appearance. It appears as though it is either Anoplognathus parvulus or a closely related species.
Arizona bug
October 17, 2009
I found this bug on my front porch. Any ideas?
Matt
Sun City, Arizona
Acrobat Beetle
Hi Matt,
This is a species of Darkling Beetle in the genus Eleodes which are known as Stink Beetles or sometimes Acrobat Beetles because of their habit of sticking their hind ends in the air and releasing an odor meant to deter predators.
Mountain Bug love
October 16, 2009
Found these two love-bugs while hiking a mountain in the Hudson Valley region of New York state during late spring. I’m not sure what they are, but I think they’re in love 
.
Tori
Hudson Valley, New York
Mating Purple Tiger Beetles
Hi Tori,
These are mating Tiger Beetles in the genus Cicindela. There are numerous species illustrated on BugGuide. We believe they may be Purple Tiger Beetles, Cicindela purpurea, though we would prefer to have an actual expert confirm the species ID. You can check out the photos and description of the Purple Tiger Beetle on BugGuide.
Dave Gracer’s comment
What’s cool about this pic is that the female has got some food, most likely supplied by the male as a token. In other words, sex for food. Other kinds of animals do this — I don’t know how many, but I know that roadrunners to it. Pretty fascinating, when you consider the possibility that there are some vague analogies in our species.
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