Gallery Category: Coleoptera

Chinese Tiger Beetle

Illustration of a tiger beetle as seen from above. The beetle is a metallic green and blue with bold red highlights. The beetle has very long, slender legs and large mandibles.

Cicindela chinensis Distribution: Asia Size: c.20mm body length Diet: Ants, flies, grasshoppers, caterpillars Fittingly, the scientific name of this Chinese Tiger Beetle (Cicindela chinensis) refers to its incredible (and very challenging to draw) metallic colouration – Cicindela roughly translates to “glowworm”. Like many iridescent insects, this shimmering surface is caused not by pigments, but by […]

Checkered Bee Beetle

Drawing of an extremely furry blue and orange beetle

Trichodes alvearius Distribution: Southern Europe & North Africa Size: 17mm Diet: Pollen & small invertebrates (adults), bee & wasp grubs (larvae) Adult checkered bee beetles lay their eggs close to hymenopteran nests or hives (hence the name “alvearius” – the bee-hive beetle), munching on the various stages of their wasp and bee victims. I wasn’t […]

African Flower Beetle

Mecynorrhina oberthuri Distribution: Africa Size: 60mm (female), 85mm (male) Diet: Leaf litter & rotting wood (larvae), tree sap & fruit (adults) Like many flower beetles (and many beetles, in fact) male M.oberthuri have a prominent horn for fighting whereas females have a blunt shovel-like head for burrowing. I really enjoyed drawing this magnificent beetle. Similar […]

Blue Leaf Beetle

Eumolpus asclepiadeus Distribution: Europe Size: 9mm Diet: Leaves and roots I couldn’t find out much about this miniature shiny blue marvel, other than the fact that if disturbed, it releases a defensive secretion from glands on its protonum and elytra. E.asclepiadeus is incredibly shiny, and my illustration here shows a degree of naivety which I’ve subsequently addressed […]

Eastern Hercules Beetle

Detailed illustration of a cream beetle with black spots. This beetle has a single horn protruding from the thorax above the head

Dynastes tityus Location: Eastern USA Size: 60mm Diet: Rotting wood (larvae), rotting fruit & tree sap (adult) D.tityus is a type of rhinoceros beetle, so called because of the males’ thick grey hides large horns, which (in a recurring theme) are used for fighting. The size of their horns are dictated by how well they […]

Flower Beetle

Illustration of a brown, cream and black beetle with large, furry front legs

Cheirolasia burkei Location: South Africa Size: 30mm body Diet: Fruit C.burkei exhibits slight sexual dimorphism (where there are physical differences between the genders). Unlike the males, the last tarsal segment of the female’s front legs are not elongated or covered in yellow hairs*. She also lacks the male’s distinctive ‘crown’. This was the second bug […]

Flower Beetle

Illustration of a green and yellow beetle

Eudicella colmanti woermanni Location: South Africa, Rwanda & Zimbabwe Size: 30mm body Diet: Not sure OK, I think I need to admit defeat with this one – I can’t find out anything about it. You’ll just have to look at the illustration some more. Take a closer look…

Goliath Beetle

Goliathus orientalis Distribution: Congo, Tanzania, Angola & Zambia Size: 100mm body (male), 60mm body (female) Diet: Tree sap What. A. Monster. G.orientalis is one of the largest Gloiath Beetle species, and looks all the more impressive when its huge wings are spread. These wings, which are more than capable of noisy flight, are black but […]

Longhorn Beetle

Illustration of a bright red and black beetle with yellow antennae

Pachyteria equestris Distribution: Malaysia Size: 30mm body Diet: Rotting wood Another member of the long horn family, P.equestris is notable for its bright red coloration. This is likely a form of aposematism, where an animal’s colouration warns would-be attackers that they’re unpleasant to eat. It’s why I always pack a red shirt if I know […]

Longhorn Beetle

Illustration of a black and yellow beetle, most notable for its thick, long antennae

Zographus aulicus Distribution: Africa Size: 45mm Diet: Wood(?) The family Cerambycidae comprises over 35,000 species characterised by possessing extremely long antennae, often longer than their body. You may also see them referred to as longicorn beetles. Capturing this one’s texture was a lot of fun, as was bringing out the blues of the legs and reds […]

Stag Beetle

Odontolabis ludekingi Distribution: Thailand Size: 70+mm Diet: Wood, fruit I can’t find out much about this particular species of stag beetle, so instead I’ll talk a little about the drawing process. As I recall, this was one of the instances where I felt I really had to raise my detail game to do the specimen […]

Saw Tooth Stag Beetle

Illustration of a green stag beetle with the right wing unfolded

Lamprima adolphinae Distribution: Indonesia & Papua New Guinea Size: 15-65mm Diet: Wood & fruit This particular specimen is a lovely emerald green colour, but you’ll also find metallic red, gold, brown, purple and blue Lamprima Adolphinae. You can see why they’re also referred to as jewel stag beetles. It was a real joy to capture the […]

Eyed Ladybird

Illustration of a red and black ladybird with striking yellow and black markings on the abdomen which resemble eyes

Anatis ocellata Distribution: Europe and Asia Size: 70-85mm Diet: Aphids You’ll find these miniature marvels in temperate forests all across Europe, Russia and central Asia – look for them on coniferous trees. There are around 5,000 species of ladybird that we know about, but Anatis ocellata is the only species that has yellow halos around its […]

Blue Striped Weevil

Eupholus schoenherri Distribution: New Guinea Size: 25-31mm Diet: Yam leaves Weevils are one of the largest insect families on the planet, with over 83,000 different species – and that’s just the ones we know about. This particular species, however, is only found in New Guinea. These weevils, and many of their close relatives, are known […]

European Stag Beetle

Illustration of a stag beetle with large antlers and a red abdomen

Lucanus cervus Distribution: Europe Size: 75mm Diet: Decaying wood (larvae), sap (adult) Lucanus cervus is the UK’s largest beetle (if you exclude a reasonably famous pop group*) and can also be found across Europe. Their giant antlers are modified mandibles and are only enlarged in the males. Like the non-insect stags from which their name […]

Red Speckled Jewel Beetle

Illustration of a beetle with a bright pink head and thorax and a blue and cream abdomen

Chrysochroa buqueti Distribution: Thailand Size: 40-47mm Diet: Wood Beetles in the Chrysochroa genus, such as this, are also known as metallic wood-boring beetles. The metallic aspect, like the jewel reference, alludes to their beautifully shiny and colourful appearence. Interestingly, their captivating iridescence is not caused by pigments in their exoskeleton, but by a microscopic texture in their cuticle […]

Harlequin Beetle

Illustration of a beetle with extremely long front legs

Acrocinus longimanus Distribution: South America Size: 76mm body Diet: Wood, bark, fungi & sap Harlequin beetles are probably best known for their incredibly long forelegs, from which they get the second half of their latin name – Manus meaning foreleg and Longi meaning, perhaps unsurprisingly, long. But why would these beetles need such long legs? […]