Busy and beautiful beetles

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Red Milkweed Beetles mating on Common Milkweed. Photo by Sally Kneidel

These beetles must spend a lot of time mating. Yesterday was only the second time I’ve ever seen them, and both times, every beetle in sight was so engaged. Dozens of them.  On both occasions, they were on patches of Common Milkweed. I was taking a walk when I saw them yesterday, hoping to spot Monarch caterpillars on the milkweed, to report to the website Journey North. Was disappointed to find no Monarchs, but enjoyed seeing the lovely Red Milkweed Beetles  instead. They’re in the family of longhorn beetles, Cyrambycidae — notice the long antennae. Not to be confused with the much more common Milkweed Bugs, which are also red and black, but are not even beetles. Milkweed Bugs are in the order of true bugs, Hemiptera.

It’s not a coincidence that Red Milkweed Beetles, Milkweed Bugs, and Monarchs all are red or orange — “warning” colors to birds and other predators.  The Monarchs and Red Milkweed Beetles and Milkweed Bugs are all toxic to predators because of toxic chemicals in the milkweed they eat.

Whenever I see milkweed, I look for monarchs.  These celebrated butterflies are declining because milkweed is declining.  The over-spraying of herbicides on genetically modified crops in the Midwest is a major reason for the demise of milkweed.   Check out this excellent article from Slate.  Monarchs need our help.  Plant milkweed!  The beetles will enjoy it too!

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In this picture, you can see what I think is the spermatophore coming out of the male’s body and being transferred to the female’s body. It looks like an orange sphere. Photo by Sally Kneidel

 

 

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These days, I blog mostly about nature and wildlife. Even the tiniest creatures make me happy! You'll also find here lots of posts about plant-based foods, health, and ecotourism. Ecotourism can support local people who make a living through sustainable use of wildlife, habitat, and natural resources.

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Our other blog, Veggie Revolution, focuses more on food than this one does, especially the environmental, health and humane aspects of our food choices. That blog was started in 2005 and continues today, while the blog you're reading now began in 2009. Some of the newer posts are on both blogs, but Veggie Rev has at least 260 more posts than this blog, including Sadie's travels to Morocco. In the sidebar of Veggie Rev, you'll see links to each year that can take you back to all the posts for a particular year.

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