Click Beetle and a Starling

We find a lot of different larvae while we're digging. This one was uncovered whilst digging a plot for potatoes.
Love the shadow!
It was very hard, like a dried mealworm we buy for birdfeed. It will turn into a click beetle. The type of beetle that leaps away with a loud click when you attempt to photograph it!
I'm glad I dropped him over the hedge (to the canal, not someone's garden!) as this click beetle (elateridae) larva eats roots and is particularly partial to potato tubers :-(
Here's a slightly more welcome visitor, while you're preparing ground. Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) eat insects (and fruit) and generally appear in flocks so can devour plenty of unwanted beasties from your plot. And, look how pretty it is!

Comments

  1. Interesting. I don't think I've seen a click beetle.
    We haven't had any starlings in the garden.

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  2. I am the same as Carolyn, not seen any click beetles nor starlings yet. But glad that the bossy Robin has returned with his more delicate and thankful Blacbird to my allotments. Honestly, there are too many bosses in my plot and I am not one of them. Now waiting for the arrival of the brown moths that love to follow me every where...lol.

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  3. Certainly din't see as many starlings as we used to, but we have a flock of about 15 that visit our site at the moment

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Please leave a comment. I'm very pleased to receive corrections or confirmations of my identification of the creatures we've spotted on the allotment.