Subject: Weird bug I never seen before
Location: San Diego, CA
May 3, 2013 9:37 pm
Dear Sir,
My name is Annabelle and I am 6 years old. Me, my 2 year old brother Hayden, and my cat Fanta found this bug crawling on the wall in my house. It took a while for me and my Daddy to catch him without hurting it. He sure was squirmy. He was tall like a pencil and as long as the size of a quarter. He also liked to play dead when we were taking pictures of him. But boy did he bounce back to his wild ways when we went to set him free.
Signature: Annabelle, Hayden, and Fanta
Dear Annabelle, Hayden and Fanta,
My you write well for a six year old. This is a Brown Leatherwing, Pacificanthia consors, a species of Soldier Beetle. Brown Leatherwings are beneficial insects that prey upon smaller creatures in the garden. They often attract attention along the west coast when they are drawn to lights in May.
‘Tis the season for brown leatherwings! My backyard (in Sonoma County) is fairly well stocked with them right now. I’m always pleased when they show up.
We are noticing a bug that looks like a brown leatherwing bug in abundance that flies and crawls
and also looks like it is mating as we often see them ajoined.
We have been told it is called some kind of a BOX—— beatle
Do you know where they have come from and what they do to gardens. Also what can we do to rid ourselves of them as you cannot sit outside without at least 10 or 12 crawling on you patio at one time. Please help us as we love to sit outside. Thankyou Marny