Pinacate Beetle (Coelocnemis) on wood chips
This is a Pinacate Beetle (genus Coelocnemis, Tenebrionidae, Coleoptera) showing its rear end in a pile of two-year-old wood chips in the canyon today. It's trying to hide "Ostrich style" - if it can't see you then you can't see it. The genus Eleodes beetles are similar, but this one has fine golden-brown hairs on the lower half of the inside margin of the hind tibiae, which are visible in my photo. It's also known as a Stink Beetle or Stinkbug or Acrobat Beetle or Clown Beetle, but I prefer the old name. Wikipedia says that "the name pinacate is Mexican Spanish, derived from the Nahuatl (Aztec) name for the insect, pinacatl..." Kids like to torment these large beetles - don't let them! The beetles put their heads on the earth, think of them as wise. These beetles are said to release a brew of noxious chemicals from their rear ends, but I can't vouch for that. This is my photo for the Macro Mondays group, with the theme of "Chip(s)" - wood chips in this case. I've been trying for a few days to get an acceptable photo for the group, and I finally got this one at the last minute this morning. (San Marcos Pass, 22 May 2017)
Pinacate Beetle (Coelocnemis) on wood chips
This is a Pinacate Beetle (genus Coelocnemis, Tenebrionidae, Coleoptera) showing its rear end in a pile of two-year-old wood chips in the canyon today. It's trying to hide "Ostrich style" - if it can't see you then you can't see it. The genus Eleodes beetles are similar, but this one has fine golden-brown hairs on the lower half of the inside margin of the hind tibiae, which are visible in my photo. It's also known as a Stink Beetle or Stinkbug or Acrobat Beetle or Clown Beetle, but I prefer the old name. Wikipedia says that "the name pinacate is Mexican Spanish, derived from the Nahuatl (Aztec) name for the insect, pinacatl..." Kids like to torment these large beetles - don't let them! The beetles put their heads on the earth, think of them as wise. These beetles are said to release a brew of noxious chemicals from their rear ends, but I can't vouch for that. This is my photo for the Macro Mondays group, with the theme of "Chip(s)" - wood chips in this case. I've been trying for a few days to get an acceptable photo for the group, and I finally got this one at the last minute this morning. (San Marcos Pass, 22 May 2017)