NicholeSauve

Thank you! :) It was right at my work. We have a lot of feild so it's much more difficult to find the nests here, especially since the killdeers are amazing at misleading you lol, but I finally found one and sectioned it off.

It's fun. . lol. And good practice. :) You should go to school for biology, or are you already?. I'm going for my Fisheries and Wildlife Management degree. Bugs can be a real pain in the butt to identify, but the worst is mushrooms. I usually give up on a lot of mushrooms..lol.

Doesn't have a specific common name. Just chafer or scarab. But scientific name should be correct. Try antennae in this picture. :)

http://bugguide.net/node/view/667067

And I already corrected on the Hermit Beetle, lol.

Hm, it's hard to see the antennae from the picture, as they are shadowed by the head, but from other pictures it looks like they probably are angled antennae. I disagree about the body though. They are very similar, including the triangle at the top of the back.

I did my big zoology project on the Praying Mantis. They are my favorite bug! I love these shots. I wanted to get some really good photos of a tiny one just coming out of the nymph stage about a month ago, now that Barry has a phone with a really good camera on it, but I didn't hang onto him until he got home from work. I love macro, and wish I still had a good camera to work with. One thing I love about the mantis, is how amazing the species are across the world. My favorite are the pink and white ones that blend with orchids. lol

I'm sorry, just Flower Chafer. Hermit Flower Beetle, although almost identical, looks to have a smooth back. Guess they are closely related. Didn't read the info very well.

I was thinking hybrid for a minute too, lol. That's all I could think is that it looked like a mix between two beetles. The japanese and maybe a black weevil or something. But I'm pretty sure it's the Flower Chafer/ Hermit Flower Beetle

Found it, I think. Suggested in ID suggestion.

Hmm. . the only beetle I seem to be finding in MI with those antennae is the Japanese Beetle, but it's color and striated back don't coincide. Guess to keep looking. Pretty photo though.