Subject: Is this a black-headed cardinal beetle?
Geographic location of the bug: Central Virginia, USA
Date: 03/19/2018
Time: 02:37 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman: Hello! I saw this tiny beetle on a fence post the other day, and tried to identify it. It looks like a black-headed cardinal beetle, but they only seem to be found in the UK. I couldn’t find it in the Virginia bug guides. Thanks in advance!
How you want your letter signed: Nina Eagle
Dear Nina,
This is Dictyoptera aurora which is pictured on BugGuide and commonly called a Golden Net-Winged Beetle or Red Net-Winged Beetle. According to BugGuide, the habitat is “coniferous/mixed forests, in decaying logs; adults on and under bark of decaying stumps and on tree trunks; also on flowers.”