Click Beetle, Melanotus castanipes/villosus (#937)

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I found this beetle when checking the moth trap this morning, under the trap actually, so I doubt it was attracted to light. It’s a click beetle, doing its thing of pinging itself up in the air with a load click when stressed. This all-black one is I think Melanotus castanipes or the very similar M. villosus. It’s a first for the garden and my second click beetle species.

June Beetles

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Last week there were some new beetles about. The brown coloured beetle is my first click beetle, Athous haemorrhoidalis. This is quite a common beetle of hedgerows and meadows, which like other click beetles can launch itself into the air with an audible click. The beetle lives on pollen, nectar and emerging foliage, bur during their 2 year larval stage the grubs if present in large numbers can damage crops and turf.

The shiny black rove beetle is of the genus Philonthus, potentially P. laminatus; there’s quite a few species to choose from, and they are very similar. This one is very uniform glossy black, including the legs. The small ladybird is a 10-spotted one, Adalia decempunctata. There are many colour variations to this species, which can even (despite its name) have up to 15 spots. These are a gardener’s friend, preying on aphids.