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Project Noah Nature School
Paropsis charybdis
This little leaf beetle was semi-translucent with strong red, cream and dark patches. Pitted lines in elytra. About 10mm long.
Attracted to security lights at the local school late at night.
Seen in Tasmania but unidentified there?.... http://www.flickr.com/photos/32977858@N0... Thanks to bayucca for making me look closely at several other P charybdis spottings of mine amongst others. The theory is now that there is a colour variability going on here. Link to 3 colour version... http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/423... and another... http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/394... and a 2 colour version... http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/378...
Spotted on Dec 20, 2013
Submitted on Dec 21, 2013
17 Comments
I'm there an hour away from the largest eucalyptus plantation in Brazil. I did some research on pests eucalyptus, in portuguese, this beetle does not appear, do not have that here. unfortunately. :)
Sckel in some parts of the world where they have taken the eucalyptus the beetle has gone with it and of course it has often become regarded as a pest because the beetle predators don't exist there. Same old story.
I wonder if these amazing beetles are confined to Australia.
nice beetle
Nice spotting Mark. I am reluctant to ID any paropsine beetles now since so many of our sources have errors. Yet they do all look like P. charybdis (which I still haven't seen). Of course we have sent them to our kiwi neighbors too http://www.flickr.com/photos/rocknvole/5...
I am longing like a child before Xmas...
I'll stir the locals and see what they say.
I love science, Mark! You just add some links and yes: a new theory is born. It was just a comment with bringing some new thoughts into the game. When you build a theory out of that, now, that's cool! :-)) and many theories ended up with a disaster... Now, let's wait and see...
..a fluid ID.. 8-]
Thanks Mac. It's fluid a ID
If I am right I will do myself, if I am wrong, you can do that ;-)...
You might ask, please, yourself, I am soon going out after having a tough time with ironing my shirts! I do not know Tony personally, yet.
And I am still happy that there are "suggestions" not in stone hammered IDs, at least in this case.
Nice one Mark.
That's a great eye Doc. I think you might be onto something. Variability would be big but the underlying basics are there. Thanks. Do you want to tell TonyD or will I? :-)
Paropsis charybdis, color variation?? Charybdis seems to be quite a variable guy...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/32977858@N0...
http://www.nzffa.org.nz/farm-forestry-mo...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nuytsia_pix...
Very close match and Tony isn't even sure about the genus!?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/32977858@N0...
Thanks Juan and Dilan. A very pleasant find.
Wow!!Nice spotting Mark!!
Very cool beetle