25 most spectacular and beautiful Beetle Species
14. Tansy beetle (Chrysolina graminis)
A very shiny tansy beetle on some wood
The tansy beetle is bright metallic green with a coppery sheen. It reaches about 11mm long. Image: Pudding4brains (CC0 1.0) via Wikimedia Commons.
The rare tansy beetle is totally dependent on the tansy plant, spending its whole life cycle on and around the plant.
This beautiful beetle is declining in the UK and is only found in North Yorkshire and Wicken Fen in Cambridgeshire. Habitat loss is the most likely cause because once a tansy plant is removed, the beetle has to walk to find another - it rarely flies, even though it has working wings.
The more common mint beetle looks similar and is often misidentified as a tansy beetle.
A very shiny tansy beetle on some wood
The tansy beetle is bright metallic green with a coppery sheen. It reaches about 11mm long. Image: Pudding4brains (CC0 1.0) via Wikimedia Commons.
The rare tansy beetle is totally dependent on the tansy plant, spending its whole life cycle on and around the plant.
This beautiful beetle is declining in the UK and is only found in North Yorkshire and Wicken Fen in Cambridgeshire. Habitat loss is the most likely cause because once a tansy plant is removed, the beetle has to walk to find another - it rarely flies, even though it has working wings.
The more common mint beetle looks similar and is often misidentified as a tansy beetle.
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13 January 2023
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