May 10, 2023
Tetraopes femoratus
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from China
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from Malaysia
seen from Japan
seen from Canada
seen from United States
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Colombia
seen from Brazil
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Nepal
seen from United States
seen from Türkiye
seen from United States
seen from Senegal
seen from France
Tetraopes femoratus
Happy bug fuck friday!
Red Milkweed Beetles (Tetraopes tetrophthalmus), family Cerambycidae, on Common Milkweed, Anna Arbor, MI, USA
photographs by Paxon Kale CC
Milkweed beetles I love you forever
(Tetraopes tetropthalmus, 7/4/2024)
Red milkweed beetles (Tetraopes tetrophthalmus). When we were kids we called these "army bugs." I don't know why.
Red Milkweed Beetles mating (by me)
Red milkweed beetles (Tetraopes spp.), Fishers Island, NY, June 2014. Feeding on common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca). Monarch butterflies aren’t the only insects to feed on milkweed plants. Many other insects have followed that evolutionary path too, such as these milkweed beetles. Like the monarch, these beetles bear striking colors that announce their toxicity to predators. The adults are active in the Mid-Atlantic in June while the monarchs make their way north. The larvae feed on the milkweed roots below. The top species is T. tetrophthalmus, and the mating pair is possibly T. melanurus
Red Milkweed Beetles mating (by me)