#soldier is a beetle

[ratxbones]

Maybe engie bee with Solly? Helmet party or not whichever you prefer ^_^ You're artstyle is gorgeous btw!!

thank you!! have some bugs :]

[hellsitegenetics]

they shall save us

the one

the only

the almighty

behold our savior

amazing

grand

perfect

can you not see?

you see things like them where most cannot.

so behold.

our savior.

they will bathe the world in their glory

String identified: t a a

t

t

t agt

a

aag

ga

ct

ca t ?

tg t t cat.

.

a.

t at t t g

Closest match: Rhagonycha lutea genome assembly, chromosome: 6 Common name: Soldier beetle

[textless]

[jonnysinsectcatalogue]

Insect Highlights of 2024

With the new year celebrations scheduled for this weekend, I thought it best to share some of my favorite insect specimens from this year, rather than one single typed of insect. The pictures here haven't been uploaded to the blog in a post, so today they can all share the spotlight. There are many familiar faces here and all of them are incredible and beautiful creatures. Hopefully there are even more insect delights and finds to enjoy in the upcoming year. To ring in the new year, we have the following insects:

Four-Spotted Skimmer - Libellula quadrimaculata - Order Odonata (May 24th)

Giant Crane Fly - Tipula metacomet - Order Diptera (September 16th)

Spring Fishfly - Chauliodes rastricornis - Order Megaloptera (May 27th - from Muskoka)

Milkweed Aphids - Aphis nerii - Order Hemiptera (September 3rd - alongside German Yellowjackets)

Oil Beetle - Meloe campanicollis - Order Coleoptera (October 21st)

Fall Webworm Caterpillars - Hyphantria cunea - Order Lepidoptera (July 25th)

Great Golden Digger Wasp - Sphex ichneumoneus - Order Hymenoptera (July 1st)

European Earwig - Forficula auricularia - Order Dermaptera (September 21st)

Common Red Soldier Beetle - Rhagonycha fulva - Order Coleoptera (July 1st)

Black-Legged Meadow Katydid - Orchelimum nigripes - Order Orthoptera (October 27)

All pictures here were taken in 2024 with a Google Pixel 4.

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year and a marvelous 2025! Thank you everyone for making this another beautiful year of insect observations! I hope to reach even more of you this year with many more wonderful insect pictures and videos. Enjoy your celebrations!

[unkn0wnvariable]

Red Soldier Beetle

A red soldier beetle feeding on an ox-eye daisy flower, at Grafham Water.

[vandaliatraveler]

Some folks follow the backcountry trails to the mountain laurel when it blooms in the spring. But my heart will always follow a path straight to the common ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius), a fantastically beautiful native shrub in the Rose family that blooms in synch with mountain laurel in late May/early June. The plant produces masses of white flowers with orange centers and extravagantly-protruding stamens, reminiscent of those of our native Spiraeas, to which ninebark is closely related. This fast-growing shrub with spreading, arching branches gets its name from multiple layers of exfoliating bark, most apparent and striking when the plant sheds its beautiful, orange-yellow foliage in the fall. Finally, as you can see in the photos above, ninebark is a miraculous pollinator plant, drawing in hordes of bees, butterflies, and beetles, including the ever-gorgeous (and apparently horny) goldenrod soldier beetle (Chauliognathus pensylvanicus).

Photos from the Deckers Creek Trail in Preston County.

[the-stove-is-divorced]

If Scarlet Scarab has no fans, then that means I am no longer on earth. Favorite morally questionable little guy. He existed for one episode and I remember him to this day. Behold my boy.

[botherbug]

bug beetle takeoff source

[wanderingmind867]

Everytime I read about Black Panther or Nighthawk or Daredevil, one prevailing thought comes to me: can we erase Batman from existence? He offers nothing theze other three don't do infinitely better! Nighthawk does the rich playboy vigilante story way better, Daredevil is a man with a disability who is also infinitely funnier (and thus more fun than batman), while Black Panther is just an all around honourable man who teaches high school kids, refuses to start fights with the mentally ill, and is all around a kind and decent human being.

But even DC has their own stolen characters! Characters like Ted Kord, the Blue Beetle! Blue Beetle belongs with Daredevil, Nighthawk and the Black Panther! We now have a quartet of characters who are infinitely better than batman, and deserve to rip him limb from limb and steal his spotlight!

[alcnfr]

I believe a Goldenrod Crab Spider (Misumena vatia) has opened an Abattoir in this Magnolia Blossom...

[ljsbugblog]

Various C. flavipennis individuals, getting busy in the warmer weather.

No common name, multiple individuals (Chauliognathus flavipennis).

[ancientstarrydynamo]

Some friends I made at the community garden

[textless]

[jonnysinsectcatalogue]

Common Red Soldier Beetle - Rhagonycha fulva

Just like a few years ago, a small section of partial wilderness in my neighborhood continues to play host to many mating pairs of Common Red Solider Beetle. When otherwise unoccupied, these diligent insects will crawl along and fly among the many flowers and buds here (including thistle buds). While some individuals are keen to hang around, dozens of individuals in this area were on patrol for soft-bodied insects to eat, such as small Caterpillars and Aphids. That in mind, the Plagiognathus Plant Bug specie seen in Pictures 1, 4 and 7 shouldn't let its guard down completely. This is of course, adult behavior, as the larvae of this Soldier Beetle feed on other plant-visiting animals such as hungry mollusks. As they visit flowers, it's worth mentioning that the diet of the adults also includes nectar and pollen, hence them diving headfirst into some of these flowers. Based on these pictures, I'm mindful of a point I brought in the previous point, where I wondered how/if these insects could serve as pollinating insects. Research supports that these Beetles play a role in pollination of certain flowers, but I wonder how that role varies across different types of flowers.

Flowers come in all shapes, sizes and configurations, and all area designed to work with some range of pollinators. So how might our Common Red friends here potentially pollinate the more open faced flowers and tipped thistle flowers in these images? The Beetle's bodies don't appear as suited for the adherence and transfer of pollen (compared to other pollinators), but they don't make direct contact with the flower's face. With how the insect travels, pollen may be transferred if some bits are caught on the Beetle's feet or from their mandibles as they go in for a nectar reward. Honestly, I think I'll need to revisit these Beetles next year when they return during the summer months. When I do, I'll observe them more carefully and see where pollen collects along their body and see how it makes contact with another flower. Regretfully, while they were many to behold when I photographed them, there were far less 2 weeks later, as their adult lives aren't long. Do not misunderstand however, these Beetles can be seen as adults all summer long, so some individuals may be airborne for a month or so, and securing mates when possible. And as it was before, the females continue to be distinctly larger than the males.

Pictures were taken on July 1, 2024 with a Google Pixel 4.

[pitchburgh]

The Goldenrod is here, and it's brought dozens of wonderful pollinators!

⚠️ wasp haters dni ⚠️

[onenicebugperday]

@ryancat submitted: Hi! Found this caterpillar in my backyard (North Alabama). ID?

It's not a caterpillar! It's a soldier beetle larva in the family Cantharidae :)