Beetle - Stenoria analis
The blister beetle Stenoria analis (Meloidae) ... the first sighting of an adult in Jersey (the larvae ... known as triangulin ... were first found in Jersey in 2009) ... on soft cliffs today.
This beetle is not found on UK mainland but was found by the late great Charles David in Guernsey in 2009.
The larvae (triangulins) attach themselves to males of the solitary bee Colletes hederae (the Ivy Bee) by imitating the sex pheromone of this bee which attracts the males and when they mate with females the triangulin transfer to the female bees and then when she enters the nest hole they drop off her and feed on the food provided for the bee larvae ... pretty damn cool eh! A beetle imitating a bee!! Nature is amazing! :)
Beetle - Stenoria analis
The blister beetle Stenoria analis (Meloidae) ... the first sighting of an adult in Jersey (the larvae ... known as triangulin ... were first found in Jersey in 2009) ... on soft cliffs today.
This beetle is not found on UK mainland but was found by the late great Charles David in Guernsey in 2009.
The larvae (triangulins) attach themselves to males of the solitary bee Colletes hederae (the Ivy Bee) by imitating the sex pheromone of this bee which attracts the males and when they mate with females the triangulin transfer to the female bees and then when she enters the nest hole they drop off her and feed on the food provided for the bee larvae ... pretty damn cool eh! A beetle imitating a bee!! Nature is amazing! :)