Malachite Beetle

This little beetle was really well camouflaged on the ribwort plantain flowerhead, but the red patch on its wing cases (elytra) gave the game away! Another common name for it is Red-Tipped Flower Beetle.

Malachius bipustulatus
The malachite beetle, presumably because of the greenish tint, is surprisingly hairy when viewed up close! 
Malachite beetle
As a flower beetle, it mainly eats pollen, flowers and tiny insects so isn’t unwelcome on the plot. As with so many insects, it’s larvae eat even more insects though generally found in tree bark.
Malachius bipustulatus


Comments

  1. Anonymous04 June, 2022

    That is just great close up photography!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thankyou, it’s so good to see the little things up close.

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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.