A Wasp beetle

03 Saturday May 2025

Tags

beetle, beetle that mimics a wasp, British beetles, Clytus arietis, Wasp beetle

Some of the creatures I encounter when leaf fossicking are off in the blink of an eye and I get no more than a tantalising glimpse of something intriguingly colourful disappearing into the undergrowth. For a horrible moment this morning, I thought that was going to be the case when I spotted the stripey underbelly of this Wasp beetle (Clytus arietis) heading behind a leaf.

Luckily for me, it re-emerged on the other side, then proved remarkably tolerant of me and my camera as I took lots of photos. I’ve only seen this wasp-mimicking beetle once before and that was back in 2016, so I was particularly pleased it proved co-operative for me today.

Beetle mania!

20 Tuesday Sep 2016

Posted by sconzani in insects, nature

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Bishop's mitre, British beetles, British bugs, Click beetle, Mint Leaf beetle, Potato capsid, Red lily beetle, Wasp beetle

Sorry, this has nothing to do with the Fab Four and, in fact, includes bugs as well as beetles but, as many of these cute little mini-beasties will soon disappear for the winter, I wanted to celebrate all those that have entertained me through the summer months but haven’t yet had their very own blog post (not because they’re boring, simply because I haven’t gathered enough good photos of them scurrying about their business in the flowers and bushes).

Little bugs and beetles, your time will come … but not till next year!
These have not all been identified to species but my list to date is: Bishop’s Mitre (Aelia acuminata); Click beetle (Elateridae family); Deraeocoris flavilinea; Heterotoma planicornis; Mint Leaf beetle (Chrysolina herbacea); Potato Capsid (Closterotomus norwegicus); Red lily beetle (Lilioceris lilii); four little unknowns; and, to finish, a Wasp Beetle (Clytus arietis).