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Project Noah Nature School
An attractive pattern on this lycid beetle will help predators learn to avoid these beetles for lunch.
Spotted on Dec 15, 2014
Submitted on Dec 15, 2014
4 Comments
You would be pleased if you realized how much I learn from your careful research. I make my share of errors and I will certainly watch antennae more closely too.
We need many students for this tricky group with 350,000 members (beetles) who have spent millions of years copying each other with sometimes amazing accuracy so as to befuddle humans in case they ever emerged :)
Oh Martin you make me laugh. You know so much more about beetles than I do. It's just that I went into panic-mode when I learnt that mine was an oedomerid and went through all my lycid spottings. I have since corrected another one which also happens to be a false blister beetle. I am going to focus on the antennae a little more. Your photos are so crisp and clear. I do agree that the pronotums are narrower in Nick's and my beetle - no argument there. thanks for the information about the narrow pronotums on pollen beetles.
Thank you for the suggestion Professor Leuba.
Upon closer inspection, the beetle I am proposing would have to be the Lycid Metriorrhynchus sp. http://australianmuseum.net.au/image/Lyc...
I consider the pronotum is very wide on mine as is the one in the previous link.
On most angles yours and the pollen beetle by Nick have narrow pronotums. Typical pollen beetles that are non lycid mmics all have narrow pronotums. I do feel foolish failing to photograph the antennae and failed to recognize how important they are.
I would welcome your response to my assessment especially if you disagree.
Martin, please consider False Blister Beetle in this case as in
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/115... (see ref. link from N.Moynihan).
A correction made by Michael Geiser on my previous spotting of a lycid mimic had me correct at least two of my "lycid" spottings. See below:
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/112...
The major external feature that distinguishes one from the other appears to be the antennae. Lycids- saw-toothed (one side of shaft) while false blister beetles have flat heart shaped segments with free tips. I can't see yours clearly but they look heart-shaped.