Subject:  What is this
Geographic location of the bug:  Winston Salem NC
Date: 05/12/2019
Time: 03:43 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Please tell me what big this is
How you want your letter signed:  Nancy Tuttle

Eyed Elater

Dear Nancy,
We are very excited that your query is allowing us to post our first image of an Eyed Elater this year.  The Eyed Elater is a species of Click Beetle, a family that includes many members that are able to right themselves if they find themselves on their backs by snapping the body and propelling the insect into the air, inevitably landing on its feet while producing an audible clicking sound.  The false eyes provide excellent protective mimicry by discouraging predators who might sense a larger creature with large eyes that might try eating the predator.

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Eyed Elater Eyed Elater Eyed Elater Eyed Elater

Subject:  Beetle in Northern Ghana
Geographic location of the bug:  Tomale, Ghana Africa (Northern Ghana)
Date: 03/30/2019
Time: 12:17 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  My sister is in the Peace Corps in Northern Ghana, and woke up to this beetle crawling on her in the early morning hours. She is not sure what it is, and we can’t seem to find anything online. Can you help us identify it?
How you want your letter signed:  Sister in the States

Click Beetle

Dear Sister in the States,
This is a Click Beetle in the family Elateridae, and its antennae are quite distinctive.  It looks very similar to this Click Beetle from Uganda that we posted many years ago.

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Subject:  Torquoise headed beetle
Geographic location of the bug:  Todos Santos, Mexico
Date: 01/09/2019
Time: 05:05 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hi!  This gorgeous fellow tried to bite my husband on our holiday.  I can’t find a pic anywhere of what it might be and was hoping for your help to identify it.
We will enjoy hearing back from you!
Thank you – The Andresen Family
How you want your letter signed:  Kelly Andresen

Ruby Click Beetle

Dear Kelly,
This gorgeous Beetle is a Ruby Click Beetle, and we are curious about the “bite” you mentioned.  Click Beetles are not venomous nor poisonous, and they are not known to “bite” humans, though we recall Eric Eaton stating once that “if it has a mouth, it can bite.”

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Subject:  jewel beetle?
Geographic location of the bug:  San Jose del Cabo, BCS, Mexico
Date: 09/06/2018
Time: 05:09 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Can you please identify this beetle? It’s about 1.5 inches long
Thank you
How you want your letter signed:  Mike Hubbard

Ruby Click Beetle

Dear Mike,
While this is NOT a Jewel Beetle in the family Buprestidae, it is a beetle with a jewel mentioned in its common name.  It is a Ruby Click Beetle, Chalcolepidius rubripennis.  The Ruby Click Beetle is well represented on iNaturalist. 

Ruby Click Beetle

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Subject:  What is this Texas bug
Geographic location of the bug:  South Central Texas
Date: 08/11/2018
Time: 12:39 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Would you please identify this bug
How you want your letter signed:  Bug

Eyed Elater

Dear Bug,
No other North American beetle looks quite like the distinctive Eyed Elater.

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Subject:  Large black bug with huge false eyes
Geographic location of the bug:  North central North Carolina
Date: 08/02/2018
Time: 11:51 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  This bug was on the wall of our home in NC.  Date was August 2,2018.  I would estimate that it was a little over an inch long.  I am pretty sure the “eyes” are not actual eyes but rather adaptive coloring.
How you want your letter signed:  Will Parrish

Eyed Elater

Dear Will,
This impressive Click Beetle is appropriately called an Eyed Elater, and you are correct that those “eyes” are not real and are used as protection against predators.

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