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Thursday
Sep232010

Blue Beetle

DateThu 2010-09-23

These small blue beetles were infesting the willowherb (Epilobium sp) on the dam at the lower end of the large lake this summer.  Possibly an Altica sp (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae).  These beetles differ from the similar Gastrophysia viridula in three ways: they are blue not green, they live on willowherb not dock (Rumex sp), and their bodies are smooth and not covered in lots of small depressions.

Photo taken in Whiteknights Park, Reading University grounds, Reading, UK, on 2010-08-30.

AuthorTristram Brelstaff | CommentPost a Comment |
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