Jewel Beetle Spring

As I write this, Leavenworth, Kansas, USA, is under an (checks notes) “extreme heat warning,” expected to last for another two days at least. It has been an excessively hot summer, and I am recounting memories from spring more than I am making new discoveries. One thing that stands out was the diversity of jewel beetles, family Buprestidae, that I found during the month of May this year.

Blue Spotwood Borer, Agrilus acutipennis

Jewel beetles are also known as metallic woodborers for their often brilliant, iridescent colors; and called flathead borers for the flattened larval stage. The adult beetles are frequently alert, dashing or flying away at the first hint of potential danger, making them a challenge to photograph. Others are exceptionally cryptic, relying on camouflage and stillness to avoid detection in the first place. Some species exhibit all of these characteristics and behaviors.

Emerald Ash Borer from May 30, 2021, Leavenworth, Kansas.

Yes, some species can be pests, namely the Emerald Ash Borer, Agrilus planipennis, but that is a species native to east Asia. It is extremely problematic where it has been introduced. Most jewel beetle species are kept in check by parasitoid wasps, predatory beetles, and other natural controls.

Unidentified Agrilus sp. from Weston Bend State Park, Missouri.

On May 4, Heidi and I went across the river to Weston Bend State Park in Missouri, one of our favorite haunts during spring bird migration. It turned out to be pretty good for insects, too, including some jewel beetles. I spotted one of the many species of the genus Agrilus that can be found in our neck of the woods. These are small, usually well under ten millimeters, very narrow and elongate, and more often than not have muted colors. They are most often seen on foliage in sunny spots in the forest understory, or along forest edges.

Texania campestris, Weston Bend State Park, Missouri.

Heidi, while taking pictures of moss or mushrooms on a stump, suddenly exclaimed that she saw a huge buprestid. Indeed, she found a big specimen of the Hardwood Heartwood Buprestid, Texania campestris. It is very likely the largest species of jewel beetle in our immediate area, ranging from 20-30 millimeters. It can be confused with the pine-boring genus Chalcophora that is found elsewhere in Missouri.

Texania campestris

T. campestris occurs east of the Great Plains, but is more common in the southern U.S. than elsewhere. Known host plants for the larvae include American Beech, American Sycamore, maples, and Black Willow.

Texania campestris

Closer to home, I visited Havens Park here in Leavenworth, on May 13. It is the closest thing to a “wild” park within walking distance. It is a hilly park, at the top of which is something of a plateau. There, at the summit, more or less, is a degraded glade habitat, more xeric than the surrounding forest, dominated by Eastern Redcedar, and some of the hardier oaks.

Blue Spotwood Borer, Leavenworth, Kansas.

I found a handful of jewel beetles flying around, and landing on, some oak saplings in one sunny spot. They turned out to be the Blue Spotwood Borer, Agrilus acutipennis, infrequently to rarely collected, according to one recent source. This is a spectacular species for the genus, at 7-10 millimeters in length, and vivid metallic blue with white scales highlighting the edges of the pronotum (top of thorax), and the sides and venter of the abdomen.

Blue Spotwood Borer

The Blue Spotwood Borer is found east of the Great Plains, well into Canada. Larvae are known to bore in Eastern White Oak, and Overcup Oak, but the adult beetles alight on all kinds of other oaks, hickories, and walnut.

Brachys ovatus, Havens Park, Leavenworth, Kansas.

In contrast to that showy species, I also noticed a Brachys ovatus, doing its best impression of a dried-up leaf edge. At only 4-7 millimeters, it is easily overlooked despite how relatively common it is, throughout eastern North America. Oddly, males of this species are rarely seen, and it may reproduce by parthenogenesis. Larvae bore in Northern Red Oak.

Common Hackberry Agrilus, Havens Park, Leavenworth, Kansas.

I also found an unusually lethargic Common Hackberry Agrilus, Agrilus lecontei, also on an oak leaf. I thought it might even be dead, a victim of a robber fly or other predator. I collected it into a vial, and by the time I got home it was apparent it was very much alive.

Common Hackberry Agrilus alive and well!

This is another small (4-7 mm) species that is supposedly uncommon, despite its widespread distribution east of the Great Plains.

Redbud Borer, Leavenworth, Kansas.

We have several Eastern Redbud trees “volunteering” in our yards, so it was not surprising to discover a Redbud Borer, Ptosima gibbicollis, on one of them on May 18.These little beetles are only 4-7 millimeters, but black with bright yellow markings, so they are easy to see.

Redbud Borer

On May 20, I was surprised and delighted to spot a Two-lined Chestnut Borer, Agrilus bilineatus, on a leaf near our front steps.

Two-lined Chestnut Borer, Leavenworth, Kansas.

Despite the name, this beetle uses a variety of oak species as host trees. It is a widespread and common species east of the Great Plains, but this is the first time I have seen one. It is 4-10 millimeters long.

Two-lined Chestnut Borer

I walk our neighborhood regularly, weather permitting, but on May 22 I took only my phone with me. Naturally, I found a lovely specimen of Anthaxia cyanella on a leaf in a hedge adjacent to an open field.

Anthaxia cyanella, Leavenworth, Kansas.

This brilliant blue beetle is only 4-5 millimeters long, and is apparently infrequently encountered. Larvae are known to bore in Eastern Redbud, Honeylocust, Downy Serviceberry, and River Birch. Adult Anthaxia species in general are usually seen on flowers, especially composites.

Beech Borer, Leavenworth, Kansas.

On May 26, once again with only my phone at hand, I noticed a Beech Borer, Agrilus obsoletoguttatus, in the little butterfly garden along one exterior wall of our local library.

Beech Borer from blacklighting in Leavenworth on June 10, 2021.

This beetle, 4-8 millimeters in length, is quite common east of the Great Plains. Larval host trees include Dwarf Chinkapin Oak, Northern Red Oak, Ohio Buckeye, Eastern Hophornbeam, and Honeylocust, among others.

Heidi and I hiked the VA Trails, another mostly wild park along the Missouri River on the Kansas side here in Leavenworth, on May 27. I didn’t see any jewel beetles until we came back to the parking lot and I noticed a large, recently-downed limb of an oak tree about fifty yards away.

Chrysobothris sp., VA Trails, Leavenworth, Kansas.

Storm damage provides woodboring beetles of all sorts with fresh resources that they quickly locate and oviposit into. Among the more reliable arrivals will be jewel beetles in the genus Chrysobothris. The bad news is that they all look very similar and are extremely challenging to identify.

Sure enough, I found several of these cryptic gems running over the bark of the tree limb. The Chrysobothris femorata species complex is probably what this one falls under. The species is named the Flatheaded Appletree Borer, but there is a wide range of deciduous trees used as hosts. These are probably opportunistic generalists that take advantage of storm damage and logging operations. Chrysobothris are midsize jewel beetles, ranging from 7-16 millimeters in this particular instance.

Chrysobothris sp. Males thump their butts on the log to get the attention of females.

Jewel beetles can be found during most of the warmer months, but spring, even early spring, is perhaps the best time to be looking for them. They are well worth pursuing, and you can help add to our collective scientific knowledge by sharing your observations on iNaturalist, Bugguide, and elsewhere. Happy Hunting!

OK, BYE-E-E-E!

Sources: Paiero, Sten M., et al. 2012. Field Guide to the Jewel Beetles (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) of Northeastern North America. Canadian Food Inspection Agency. 411 pp.
Solomon, J.D. 1995. Guide to Insect Borers of North American Broadleaf Trees and Shrubs. Agriculture Handbook 706. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 735 pp.

Moth Week 2026 by Phone

I am so far behind in uploading camera photos to my computer and external hard drives that I literally “phoned it in” for National Moth Week, July 18-26. The photos in this post were taken with my iPhone 14. I promise that eventually I will have camera photos added to most of my observations posted on iNaturalist.

Our set-up at Atchison State Fishing Lake.

Officially, according to the current status on iNat for the Moth Week project in Kansas, I finished with a little over 90 species of moths in 234 observations. That was better than I expected. June is typically a more productive month for moth diversity here in northeast Kansas, USA. I am also not very proficient in identifying moths. I must thank the very knowledgeable and generous experts on iNaturalist for helping me out.

Suzuki's Promalactis Moth

Linden Prominent.

I began the week by putting out our blacklight in the front yard, near the giant Pin Oak tree that is probably responsible for feeding most of our insect diversity, both literally and figuratively. The weather the entire week was mostly hot, and vastly more humid than we usually experience here, so that was in our favor.

White-lined Sphinx from the back yard.

Two days later, on July 20, I switched to the back yard. We now have an outlet on the exterior of our detached garage, so I also plugged in a bright white light. We usually use a lightweight Jackery generator to run both the blacklight and a terribly dim LED white floodlight. The brighter light with the traditional bulb drains the generator in less than a couple of hours, compared to the LED. I welcome suggestions for a brighter white light that will run longer through the Jackery.

Heidi spotted this Curved-ribbon moth, Dinumma deponens on the door to the garage. This species is native to Asia.

It is surprising how different the results can be between our two yards. The backyard includes overhanging branches of a Silver Maple in the neighbor’s yard, plus a strip of mostly native herbaceous plants like White Snakeroot, goldenrod, Coreopsis, and coneflower, some of which Heidi planted, some of which is volunteering.

Maple Looper moth.

We also have volunteer Eastern Redbud, Eastern Black Walnut, hackberry, and young Pin Oaks planted by the resident squirrels. Our backyard “lawn” features sedges, plantain, LOTS of violets (the ornamental variety), clover, wood sorrel, and other non-native species.

Walnut Catoptilia moth.

Heidi decided we should try blacklighting out of town, at the Atchison State Fishing Lake in Atchison County, Kansas, so on July 21, we gave it a try. As expected, we were initially inundated with midges from the nearby lake. Caddisflies and aquatic beetles also showed up in large numbers. I think I will wear a mask next time we are anywhere near water, to avoid inhaling the smaller insects.

Heidi found this freshly-emerged Honey Locust Moth on the ground, then put it on a tree trunk where the insect fully inflated its wings.

While we were waiting for things to simmer down at the lights, we looked around the forest edges, and managed to find a few moths that way, too, along with the odd beetle, spider, or other nocturnal creature.

A Crocus Geometer moth, species unknown, Atchison State Fishing Lake.

We did not get back home until nearly two o’clock the next morning, but it was well worth the trip, and we will probably try again in the future. There was only one tent in the campground, and only two other vehicles came along. No one bothered us, though it helped that we were there on a weekday and not a weekend.

Hagen's Sphinx really does have this lovely mossy green tinge to it.

The night of July 24, I decided to be lazy and merely turn on the front porch light. Again, it is surprising what will come to the porch light versus the blacklight. Then again, at the porch light there are usually fewer numbers of insects, and I can concentrate on individual specimens.

A very shiny micro moth, Homosetia argentinotella, at the front porch light.

This is where I often find unique “micro” moths. Indeed, I added at least one new one to our home list of fauna and flora. I encourage everyone who participates in National Moth Week, or who routinely blacklights for insects, to pay special attention to micros. You could easily document something new to your county, state, or even the country.

A male White-marked Tussock Moth on the side of our house during the day.

Saturday evening, July 25, after a wonderful dinner at a local Italian restaurant, I walked through downtown Leavenworth and discovered several moths that were still present on storefronts, having been attracted to lights the night before.

This Maple Zale moth is not so well camouflaged on a windowsill in downtown Leavenworth.

I was secretly hoping to find a Black Witch in one of the recessed alcoves, but no luck. There have been records of that giant subtropical moth in the Kansas City area, but not yet this year.

Virginia Creeper Sphinx from downtown Leavenworth.

From downtown, I walked up to my in-laws’ home and set up the blacklight in their back yard, something we hadn’t done in years. It was a near total bust. We were overwhelmed by caddisflies, literally thousands of them.

Spotted Phosphila Moth.

Ironically, away from the light I found a nice specimen of the Spotted Phosphila Moth, Phosphila miselioides. That was the highlight of the night, and we packed it in early.

An unidentified plume moth by our front porch during the day.

We ended the week on July 26 by setting up the blacklight in the front yard again, and shining the bright white light onto a sheet of foamcore in the back yard (we need another sheet). Naturally, some of the nicer moths I was only able to get photos of just after midnight. I may cheat a little and backdate a camera photo or two for moths that I know I saw prior to the closing bell. That’s allowed, right?

Yellow-winged Oak Leafroller moth at front yard blacklight.

I swear I saw this Painted Lichen Moth flying behind the sheet before midnight. Honest!

I hope you had success in your own Moth Week adventures, or that you will consider participating in future years. It is truly wonderful, fascinating, and sometimes challenging experience. It is even better with a small party of other excited people.

Lordi Marker Prairie Bioblitz

Heidi and I participated for the fifth consecutive year in the annual bioblitz conducted by the Missouri Prairie Foundation, on June 6-7, 2026. This year it was at the Lordi Marker Prairie, which is adjacent to some other protected prairie acreage, at least one of which is under the ownership of Missouri Department of Conservation. The area is south-southwest of Sedalia, Missouri, in Pettis County.

Per our usual duties, we led a bug walk each day, and deployed a blacklight at night on Saturday.

The turnout for these events is always excellent, and diverse, with people of all ages and ethnicities gathering in a welcoming space.

Once again, the weather turned out to be better than expected, though those people who tent camped on the property did experience thunderstorms and showers in the middle of the night, early Sunday morning.

An iPhone 14 photo of a Margined Leatherwing beetle on yarrow.

Upon arriving, we were a bit startled by how many flowers were blooming. Especially abundant was New Jersey Tea, but the flowers seemed to attract relatively few insects except for beetles. The Margined Leatherwing, Chauliognathus marginatus, was one of the most abundant of insects, as is usually the case in early June in this part of the country. The Dark Flower Scarab, Euphoria sepulchralis, was also common.

Dark Flower Scarab, Euphoria sepulchralis, on New Jersey Tea.

One of the highlights of our visit was seeing a couple of Regal Fritillary butterflies, Argynnis idalia, formerly Speyeria idalia, flitting from flower to flower in the distance. This is a vulnerable, if not threatened, prairie-dependent insect, which feeds on the leaves of violets in the caterpillar stage. Its presence here indicates a high-quality habitat, even if “reclaimed” from its history as a hayfield. I can apparently show you this species, despite its conservation status.

Regal Fritillary leaving a flower.

There were different group leaders for butterflies, and for bees, and it proved something of a challenge to document many of those pollinator species. They were there, but widely scattered and difficult to intercept. We had somewhat better luck, if only because we had few taxonomic constraints. Anything insect or arachnid was fair game.

An immature White-banded Crab Spider, Misumenoides formosipes, waits in ambush on a flower.

One of the bee experts joined us on Sunday morning, and furnished participants with vials, and nets, they could use to capture specimens and bring them back to show everyone. This worked very well, and we will adopt this strategy for future outings.

Late instar nymph of a Broad-winged Sedge Grasshopper.

Our sharp-eyed and curious party members secured some truly exciting finds. Chief among them were nymphs, and a couple of adults, of the Broad-winged Sedge Grasshopper, Stethophyma celatum. I had never heard of it, either! In fact, I wrongly identified it as a species in the genus Chloealtis, when it doesn’t even belong in the same subfamily. Someone on iNaturalist corrected my repeatedly, which caused me to consult some grasshopper experts I know personally, and they confirmed it. I then apologized to the iNat person for doubting them.

Adult Broad-winged Sedge Grasshopper.

This grasshopper is another prairie obligate denizen, and a significant record.

Another unique species was a large fulgorid planthopper, Cyrpoptus belfragei, pictured above. It looks like a cross between a spittlebug (we saw plenty of evidence of those, too), and a cicada.

As a precaution for potential severe weather, we simply hung the blacklight on the bigtop tent.

Blacklighting produced some cool bugs, too. My favorite was probably a Bruner’s Earth-boring Scarab Beetle, Bolbercerosoma bruneri, that disappeared as quickly as we had uncovered it in a fold at the bottom of the tent flap.

Bruner's Earth-boring Scarab Beetle.

We also documented a vulnerable moth species, which I cannot, in good conscience, disclose its identity. There are enough unscrupulous collectors and dealers that it would put this population at risk of anihilation. Suffice that this prairie exceeds expectations for flora and fauna.

Another interesting moth, the Bog Glyph, Deltote bellicula.

While I am a member of, and volunteer for, the Missouri Prairie Foundation, I am not being compensated for singing its praises. This is one of those rare organizations that pays attention to details, and recognizes the importance of contributions from all demographics, including Indigenous peoples. It works with landowners over the long term to secure protection for habitat in perpetuity.

A longhorned beetle, Batyle suturalis, on a flower.

Those human relationships, between all the volunteers at the bioblitz, and between the nonprofit and private property owners, are what we need to promote across our entire country. It is becoming clear that when left to political institutions, little is truly sacred, and even less is enduring.

Spangled Pelochrista moth, Pelochrista scintillana, was common.

All observations from the bioblitz can be found here on iNaturalist. Please explore iNaturalist projects to find bioblitzes near you, and participate in them. I guarantee you will make new friends, have a great time, and probably make some important discoveries, be they personal or scientific.