Subject: Big Bend Bug
Location: Big Bend National Park, Texas
May 9, 2015 7:26 am
Just after photographing the April sunrise lighting up Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend National Park, we saw the bug in the attached photo. It is very pretty, with iridescent green, blue, and lavender highlights. Can you please identify him for us?
Thank you
Signature: Richard Banke
Dear Richard,
This is a gorgeous image of a Desert SpiderBeetle in the genus Cysteodemus. Based on ranges indicated on BugGuide, this is most likely Cysteodemus wislizeni, sometimes called a Black Bodied Meloid.
Daniel,
Thank you for the quick response (and the nice compliment on the photo!).
Rick