Beetles

Dogbane Leaf Beetles are oval-ish, mostly measure less than a half an inch, come in bright colors, have un-spectacular antennae, smallish heads often shielded by a large-ish prothorax (first segment of the thorax), short legs, and domed elytra. The DLB’s incandescence is the result of the play of light on exceedingly small, tilted plates that overlay its pigment layer. Light bounces off both the pigment and the plates, and the colors change with the angle of the observer.

Hairy Rove Beetles are found during temperate months in woods east of the Mississippi and also across The Pond. There they mostly hide out under stuff—dead bark, rocks, leaf litter, dung and carrion. Most rove beetles are carnivores or scavengers as both adults and larvae, but a few species eat mushrooms and plant materials. The HRB is counted among the insect tools of Forensic Entomologists who determine post-mortem intervals.

Wisconsin’s first Emerald Ash Borer infestation was discovered in the summer of 2008 on property adjacent to Riveredge Nature Center, just three miles from the BugLady’s home. EABs had been nibbling at the state’s north and south borders for several years, and their leapfrogging of several counties into Ozaukee County was a surprise. Since that date, they have been found elsewhere in the southern half of the state (go to Wisconsin’s Emerald Ash Borer Information Resource and click on the link labeled “Map”).

Today’s episode—”Big Beetle, Tiny Beetle”—shows some of the amazing range of this fantastic (and largest) order of insects; the Fiery Searchers and Tumbling Flower beetles.

Dermestid Beetles are small (about ¼”), dark, compact, short-legged beetles that often have a covering of scales or hairs. Their larvae are dark, reddish-brown and bristly, and are a bit bigger than their parents. Some of these beetles, especially those that live in domestication are called larder beetles. Thery eat some high-protein dried plants, but their primary targets are stored animal materials like cured bacon and ham, dry pet food and dog biscuits, cheese, cereal, hides, wool carpets, upholstery and clothing.

Clay-colored Leaf Beetles (CCLBs) have a broad crimson stripe, which may refer to some portion of the CCLB’s anatomy. As a group, they come in a variety of shapes and colors and they are vegetarians in both their larval and adult stages. Adults feed in the open on leaves, stems, flowers and/or pollen; many target a specific plant or group of plants for food.

Pennsylvania Leatherwings also called Goldenrod Soldier Beetles are among the most common members of the Soldier Beetles in the Midwest. Adults are found in mind-boggling numbers on the flowers of roadsides and old fields in late summer and throughout fall. References seem divided about the food habits of adult PLWs. Some put them squarely in the vegetarian column eating pollen and nectar, while others put them in the carnivore (small insects) or the omnivore (pollen, nectar and small insects) category.

Water pennies are the larvae of riffle beetles. Water pennies live underwater on rocks in rapid currents—an unusual habitat for a beetle, but one that offers some protection from predators. Adult riffle beetles can be found in the water or basking on rocks and logs just above the water line. The adults are hairy, ¼inch beetles; the larvae, called water pennies for their shape and color, look like well-camouflaged, tiny, suction cups.

Darkling beetles are small-to-medium-sized, dark, slow-moving beetles. Their elytra are often grooved and/or pitted. Both the adults and larvae are nocturnal scavengers on “dead” material like clothing, rugs, stored foods, and plant and insect collections as well as on rotting wood and fungi. There are about 1,200 species of darkling beetles in North America mostly in the West.

Looking like dark watermelon seeds, mobs of whirligig beetles scoot across the still waters of ponds, lakes, streams and rivers. Their basic design is a short antennae, elytra that end before the abdomen does, the ability to secrete a smelly substance that deters predators, and a shiny, black finish. They row with their flattened and fringed middle and hind pairs of legs, and they hold their front pair of legs forward, ready to grasp their prey.