Subject: Ukrainian Beetle
Location: 150km south of Kiev, Ukraine
August 2, 2012 6:21 am
Saw lots and lots of these on a recent (July) trip to Ukraine, obviously during mating season! My dad thinks it is some sort of tiger beetle, but only having books of UK beetles, we are unable to get any closer in our identification.
Signature: Thank you! Mel
Hi Mel,
These are mating Firebugs, Pyrrhocoris apterus, and they are True Bugs, not Beetles. They are very rare in the UK, but the British Bugs website does have a page devoted to Firebugs.
Thanks very much for such a prompt reply! Out of 350,000 species in the world, you nailed it in a few hours!
Regards,
Mel