Metallic Wood boring beetle

Description:

This beetle has interesting gray, bronze, and black markings. Although known for their metallic coloring due to the lack of sunlight on this guy the metallic coloring was not visible at the time I took the photographs. The body is oval shaped and the head is flat.

Habitat:

Found in eastern and south eastern United States. Found on pine, spruce, fir and hemlock trees. Wood borers will feed on green wood, but often prefer dead or dying branches located on a healthy tree.

Notes:

Thanks to BugGuide I now know that this spotting is a Wood Boring beetle in the family Buprestidae. A specific species has not been named so any help would still be appreciated. It is the only time I have seen a Wood boring beetle. Once I knew what it was I tried my best to connect it to a specific species but have not had any luck. FUN FACTS: Beetles in this family can sense pine smoke from a distance of 50 miles. These super cool borers can see infrared light enabling them to locate forest fires. Ref: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buprestida...