Black yet colorful ground beetle?
Location: Fairfield, Maine USA
August 28, 2010 10:33 am
Dear Bugman,
I think it’s a ground beetle, only because I found it crawling around on the ground. It looked sdull black at first but actually has iridescent/opalescent areas all over it. Do you know what this bug is?
Thanks,
James R
Twelve Spotted Tiger Beetle
Hi James,
We really must abandon the computer this morning and go outside. This is a Tiger Beetle in the subfamily Cicindelinae (see BugGuide) and most likely the genus Cicindela. You may want to browse through BugGuide’s pages of species to try to identify your beetle. Many Tiger Beetles look similar to one another, but they have very limited ranges which sometimes aids in the identification.
P.S. Was this photographed today? If you are searching through your archives of photographs to send, please include information on when the sighting occurred as some insects are very limited in their seasons.
Twelve Spotted Tiger Beetle
Hi Daniel,
This was taken about one day ago…
Thanks,
James
Thanks James,
That might be very helpful information as certain species of Tiger Beetles only appear in the spring.
Update: August 31, 2010
James provided a comment after browsing through the Tiger Beetles on BugGuide and he properly identified his Twelve Spotted Tiger Beetle, Cicindela duodecimguttata. The data page on BugGuide indicates many sightings in August.
¶ Posted 28 August 2010 § ‡ ° Little pretty green colored bug or beetle?
Location: Fairfield, Maine USA
August 23, 2010 12:16 pm
Dear Bugman,
I found this little green bug? it was very interesting looking so I wanted to know what it could be? Can you identify it, please?
Thank you,
James R
Northern Corn Rootworm
Hi James,
This Skeletonizing Leaf Beetle is a Northern Corn Rootworm, Diabrotica barberi and we identified it on BugGuide.
Thanks Daniel,
What an interesting name it has.
James
Hi again James,
WE did a bit more research and found information on the Illinois Integrated Pest Management website where we learned: “Larval feeding on corn roots may reduce yields. Injured root tips feature brown lesions. In some fields, entire nodes of roots may be pruned severely. Pruned roots are less capable of supplying water and nutrients to the growing ears and moderate to severe root pruning may result in lodging and significant losses at harvest. Larval injury also may make roots more susceptiable to root and stalk rot fungi. High adult densities may clip silks resulting in poor pollination and reduced kernel set.“
¶ Posted 27 August 2010 § ‡ ° Clover Leaf Weevil
Location: Kendall County, Illinois
August 25, 2010 6:48 pm
I thought you might like these photos to add to your weevil collection. I believe it is the Clover Leaf Weevil. We live in N. Illinois, on a farm. My daughter found it in her room. It probably came in on her clothes.
Stacy C
Broad-Nosed Weevil
Hi Stacy,
There is not enough detail in your image for us to be able to say for certain what the species is, but we agree that this Weevil is in the subfamily that contains the Clover Weevil, the Broad-Nosed Weevils, Entiminae. You can compare your specimen to the individuals posted to BugGuide.
¶ Posted 26 August 2010 § Weevils ‡ ° beetle thing with long beak
Location: Farmingdale, Long Island, New York
August 26, 2010 12:54 am
Dear Mr. Bugman,
I’ve been browsing your site and haven’t really found anything close to this little guy I found today. I work at an airport in New York, and I found him while I was pumping fuel into my fuel truck. It looks kinda like a beetle, but it has this really strange beak. The beak is thin and about the length of one of its legs. And it looks like it has two antennae (?) protruding from the beak. The insect itself is about a centimeter long, I would say. This is the strangest insect I’ve seen in a while. I really hope you get to this one because I really want to know what it is!
Thanks,
Trevor
Acorn Weevil
Hi Trevor,
This interesting beetle is an Acorn Weevil in the genus Curculio. According to BugGuide: “Female uses her long snout for boring into nuts/acorns, and deposits eggs there. Larvae feed inside the acorn/nut and emerges to pupate in the soil.“
¶ Posted 26 August 2010 § Weevils ‡ ° Oddly large and long insect
Location: Troutdale, Oregon.
August 26, 2010 3:02 am
I was outside picking up after my children this evening. It was dark, and I noticed this oddly large and long insect, it seemed to be rather aggresive when I scooped him/her up to take a picture. It was crawling over a graveled area next to my lawn. (there is quite alot of grass and weeds growing through the gravel) I spent nearly two hours online trying to identify the critter with no success. I would be very interested to know what type of insect this is, as I have never before scene one. It was approximately 1 inch long, with large mandibles, and the tail section curved upwards when threatened, like you would see a scorpions tail do, along with the mandibles opening.
Thank you so much for your assistance.
Jason
Troutdale, Oregon
Devil's Coach Horse
Dear Jason,
Though it looks more like a larva, this Devil’s Coach Horse, Ocypus olens, a species of Rove Beetle, is actually a mature adult. It was introduced from Europe in the mid twentieth century. These are predators and we have read that they will eat snails and slugs.
3
¶ Posted 26 August 2010 § ‡ ° White Ladybug?
Location: Michigan
August 25, 2010 10:18 am
I found this ladybug crawling on one of our kayaks in Michigan (not to worry, I moved it before I went out onto the water). I’ve never seen a white ladybug before, so I have to ask, what is it? Is is a species separate from red ladybugs, or some kind of albino insect?
(Also, I apologize if you receive multiple emails from me. I attempted to send this earlier, but the photograph may have been too large and it didn’t seem to send properly, so I cropped the image and tried again.)
Kevin
Ashy Gray Lady Beetle
Hi Kevin,
We believe this is an Ashy Gray Lady Beetle, Olla v-nigrum (See BugGuide), though we would not discount it being another species.
Correction: November 23, 2010
WE just received numerous corrections of Lady Beetle identifications including this Fifteen Spotted Lady Beetle, Anatis labiculata. The Discover Life website has some nice matching photos.
¶ Posted 25 August 2010 § ‡ ° Longhorn Beetle
Location: Fairfield, Maine USA
August 23, 2010 1:42 pm
Dear Bugman,
I think I found a Flower Longhorn Beetle (Stictoleptura canadensis) on my Land Cruiser. I wonder why it was so far from the meadow and flowers…Can you please confirm/dis-confirm the I.D. and share any interesting info about this beetle?
Thank you,
James R
Banded Longhorn
Hi James,
We agree that your beetle is Stictoleptura canadensis, and the BugGuide information page is noticeably lean on information. It is a Flower Longhorn which means that though the larvae are wood borers, the adults feed on pollen. The data page on BugGuide indicates the species is found in both eastern and western North America from Canada to Arizona. According to the Cirrus Image website, the species is called the Banded Longhorn.
Banded Longhorn
Strange, I thought this (see attached) was the Banded Longhorn because of this image I found on B.G…
I guess the names are a little general?
Thank you,
James
Hi James,
Common names do not have the rigorous degree of regulation that scientific names have, though because there are not many fact checkers, there are often incorrect identifications posted on the internet. That is why we like to have “credible” websites for our links. The link you provided is an unidentified Longhorned Borer Beetle, but we followed information on the page to the bugGuide information page for the Banded Longhorn, Typocerus velutinus. If BugGuide is using the common name Banded Longhorn, it must be an officially accepted common name.
Hello Daniel,
Wow, thanks for the info and the additional identification!
It’s incredible that so many bugs and insects are even identified, at all.
Best regards,
James
Hissing Beetle
Location: King County, Washington
August 23, 2010 12:47 pm
Hello,
My husband and I came across this beetle attached to our door jam on the outside. It would not let go & then when we were able to pry it lose it was hissing at us. We moved to a safe location where it sat for 2 days. It did not move 1 inch. This morning it was gone. We could not locate it any where. We have never seen this type of bug in our area (which is south-eastern part of Wahington). Please let us know.
Thank you, Erma Gunter
Ten Lined June Beetle
Hi Erma,
Your large beetle is a Ten Lined June Beetle. Many beetles make the hissing noise you describe, a phenomenon known as stridulation. The noise is made when the beetle or other insect rubs parts of its body together. It is thought to be a defense mechanism.
Thank you for responding back. Now I can put a name to the face. Is this a common beetle in our area? Are there numbers of them?
Sorry……I’m very excited about thus beetle. I have never seen one quit like this before.
Thank you again, Erma.
Hi again Erma,
The species, Polyphylla decemlineata, ranges in the western and central states and it is not rare. Adults feed on leaves including the needles of conifer trees. You can read more on BugGuide.
¶ Posted 23 August 2010 § ‡ ° 
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