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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nA blushing beetle! Who knew? The COREOPSIS BEETLE<\/em><\/strong> (Calligrapha californica<\/em>) is a species that has several subspecies and lots of variation, with beetles that are more and less blushy: Disonycha<\/a>, Leaf Beetle<\/a>, Leaf Beetle 2<\/a>, Leaf Beetle 3<\/a>. Members of this often-very-decorative genus have appeared in BOTW before. Eggs are laid in leaf litter near host plants in summer, and they hatch the following spring. The larvae are fitted out with egg-bursting tubercles on their thorax that assist their exit. They feed until fall and then overwinter as pupae, emerging as adults the following summer. Their larvae resemble the shiny, black larva included here. There are 14 species in the genus north of the Rio Grande; Ophraella<\/em> conferta can be found east of the Rockies on goldenrod leaves. It\u2019s reported that they feed at night and that they can occur in large enough numbers to do significant damage to their host plants. SCHIZOTIS CERVICOLIS<\/em><\/strong> has no common name (for no earthly reason that the BugLady could discern, one site calls it the \u201cFlaming-pillow beetle<\/em>,\u201d but she\u2019s not dignifying that one). It\u2019s a Fire-colored beetle, family Pyrochroidae (because many species in the family have red or orange body parts). Male pyrochroids often have fancy antennae. The BugLady photographed it as it bobbed up and down on a stem in a wetland on a breezy day in late spring. Like the coreopsis beetle above, it resides across northern half of North America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Check link<\/a> for some nice pictures of the beetle\u2019s life cycle. The larvae are found in rotting logs, where, according to Morphology and Systematics (Elateroidea, Bostrichiformia, Cucujiformia partim),<\/span> 2010, \u201c[larvae of] Schizotis specialize in decaying woody sections of moss-covered logs in boreal-like areas (e.g. edges of bogs). While both woody and fungal materials are found in the gut, fungi are thought to play a key role in larval development. In crowded situations, larvae may sometimes become cannibalistic, but contrary to some older reports, they are not normally predaceous<\/em>.\u201d An internet search didn\u2019t turn up much information on this species\u2019 life history, but one of the \u201cRelated searches\u201d was for \u201cList of terms that start with SCHIZOT<\/em>.\u201d More than you\u2019d expect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most of the click beetles of her acquaintance are black or dark brown, so the BugLady was excited to find this small, red AEOLUS MELLILUS<\/em><\/strong> (probably) under the porch light in June. Common names are the Flat wireworm beetle and, inexplicably, the Sweet click beetle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Click beetles\u2019 superpower is their ability to right themselves (dramatically \u2013 and with a click) after landing on their backs (Check episode<\/a>). Their larvae (grubs) are collectively called wireworms, and because of their diet, some are a staple on Agricultural and Extension websites. Some species feed in the soil on dead organic matter, some on the larvae of other insects, and others on plant roots and stems. They locate their food by following its carbon dioxide trail. According to the University of Alberta, Ms. Sweet click beetle, at least in populations in the Canadian prairies, is parthenogenic \u2013 she doesn\u2019t need Mr. Sweet click beetle to produce baby Sweet click beetles. Parthenogenesis tends to result in female offspring, and males are pretty much unknown in the Canadian studies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The BugLady thinks that this is ENOCLERUS MUTTKOWSKII<\/em><\/strong> (unless it\u2019s the very similar E. ichneumoneus<\/em>), a Checkered beetle in the family Cleridae. There\u2019s not much information out there on its life history \u2013 its larvae are beneficial, preying on the larvae of some beetles that live under the bark of evergreens and feed on the phloem tissue (the plant\u2019s plumbing) in eastern\/northeastern North America. Adults are generalized predators. Some members of the genus, including this one, are considered mimics of velvet ants (which, despite their name, are flightless, female wasps that pack quite a punch). Another Enoclerus<\/em> beetle was featured in a past episode<\/a>.
The quarter-inch coreopsis\/tickweed beetle is in the large and very diverse Leaf beetle family Chrysomelidae, many of whose species are very particular about the leaves they pursue. In this case, both the larvae and the adults eat leaves of plants in the composite\/aster family, particularly beggar\u2019s tick (Bidens<\/em>), Coreopsis<\/em>, and ragweed, and they\u2019ve been known to demolish a whole plant, right down to the ground! They\u2019re found across the northern two-thirds of North America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/field-station\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/380\/2017\/10\/ophraella.jpg\")
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OPHRAELLA CONFERTA<\/em><\/strong> (probably) is another Chrysomelid. Having been pregnant a few times herself, the BugLady gets a kick out seeing these ready-to-burst beetles. Alternatively, one photographer wondered if the beetle might be full of parasites, but, a good number of the pictures in bug guide<\/a> show similarly gravid-looking beetles and are labeled \u201cfemale.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/field-station\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/380\/2017\/10\/leaf_beetle_larva.jpg\")
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Females mate in late summer and overwinter as adults, storing the sperm internally. They don\u2019t fertilize or lay their eggs until after they wake up and have something to eat the following spring, then they oviposit every few days, laying their eggs in tidy clumps. See this link<\/a> for a set of pictures of egg through adult.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/field-station\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/380\/2017\/10\/schizotus.jpg\")
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Adult males of this genus are attracted to cantharidin, a defensive chemical produced by blister beetles. For the story on that, see this previous BOTW about a different fire-colored beetle at past episode<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/field-station\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/380\/2017\/10\/aeolus_mellilus.jpg\")
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Aeolus mellilus<\/em> is found in grasslands and gardens over much of North America. The larvae dine on the roots of corn and potatoes, but they also relish wheat and other cereal crops, and some sources call them a minor crop pest. They lop stems off at the soil surface instead of burrowing in like other wireworms and doing their damage from within. They are also described as fierce and active predators that probably feed on the larvae of the competition. Adults eat plants and are nocturnal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/field-station\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/380\/2017\/10\/enoclerus.jpg\")
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The BugLady found a very cool paper by researcher Jacques Rifkind called \u201cEnoclerus Gahan: predators of chemically protected ladybird beetles (Coleoptera: Cleridae and Coccinellidae<\/em>)\u201d. After carefully scrutinizing many photographs posted on the internet by insect enthusiasts, Rifkind verified five species of Enoclerus feeding on various species of ladybugs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n