Beetle Larva (?)

Every 30 days the site administrators will pick a favorite macro or close-up image from one of the "Macro and Close-up" galleries to be featured on the front page of the www.photomacrography.net website.

Moderators: rjlittlefield, ChrisR, Chris S., Pau

frankw
Posts: 129
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2014 9:45 am
Location: Port Townsend,Washington, USA

Beetle Larva (?)

Post by frankw »

Hello,
I am reasonably sure that this is a beetle larva of some sort, though I of course am more than open to correction! Possibly destined to be a Green Ostomid, as there were several of those under the same piece of bark (Dougla Fir).
Canon 6D, MPE-65, 300 images stacked with Zerene

Image

ChrisR
Site Admin
Posts: 8668
Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 3:58 am
Location: Near London, UK

Post by ChrisR »

That's a deep stack for the magnification! It's come out nice and clear.
It's a good match, to my ignorant eye, to the larva sketches in

Insect Families Common under Bark in Alberta, A.G. Raske

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= ... 2s&cad=rja

Illustrations 52 and 53.

I'm curious about the perspective - is the animal really bigger at the back than the front? Sometimes the "scale" correction in the stacking software plays tricks..?

frankw
Posts: 129
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2014 9:45 am
Location: Port Townsend,Washington, USA

Beetle Larva (?)

Post by frankw »

Thanks ChrisR. It was indeed a deep stack, but the length of the larva dictated that... 19mm! There is a slight increase in size the further aft you go, though not as pronounced as the image would lead you to believe. Thanks also for the link to Insect Families Common Under Bark. Useful to me as Alberta is pretty close (WA State, USA).
Here is a close up of his pincers, Canon 6D, 200mm telephoto with Nikon Plan 10X/0.25, 200 images Zerene

Image

frankw
Posts: 129
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2014 9:45 am
Location: Port Townsend,Washington, USA

Beetle Larva (?)

Post by frankw »

I should clarify that the pincer close up was from another larva, same species, possibly different sex??-wild guessing on my part- found in the same log...

Ichthyophthirius
Posts: 1152
Joined: Thu Mar 07, 2013 5:24 am

Post by Ichthyophthirius »

Hi,

Great images!

This is a beetle larva, family Pyrochroidae (Fire-coloured beetles). The larvae live under bark and hunt for other insects. http://www.zin.ru/animalia/coleoptera/i ... chev12.jpg http://www.alexanderwild.com/Insects/In ... /i-TLCJq3X

Regards, Ichthy

frankw
Posts: 129
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2014 9:45 am
Location: Port Townsend,Washington, USA

beetle Larva (?)

Post by frankw »

Thanks Ichthy. According to my book, Insects of the Pacific Northwest, we don't have Fire colored beetles here. But that's just one book, and I am at the very bottom of the learning curve!! :oops: :lol:

ChrisR
Site Admin
Posts: 8668
Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 3:58 am
Location: Near London, UK

Post by ChrisR »

Pincers? Cerci? I'm no beetleologist :(

rjlittlefield
Site Admin
Posts: 23561
Joined: Tue Aug 01, 2006 8:34 am
Location: Richland, Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: beetle Larva (?)

Post by rjlittlefield »

Dendroides ephemeroides is a possibility, for example http://bugguide.net/node/view/440882/bgimage reported from Thurston County, Washington.
frankw wrote:According to my book, Insects of the Pacific Northwest, we don't have Fire colored beetles here.
I think I don't have that book -- although it may be one of the numerous books that I think I don't have, even though I actually do. :?

In any case I am curious to know: does the book specifically say that we do not have Pyrochroidae, or does it simply omit mention of them?

--Rik

frankw
Posts: 129
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2014 9:45 am
Location: Port Townsend,Washington, USA

beetle larva

Post by frankw »

Hi Ric,
Well, they don't specifically say that we don't, though another book, Simon & Schuster's Guide to Insects does specify the Fire Colored Beetles as being an Eastern US resident. As I said, I am at the very bottom of the learning curve, so I really shouldn't speak out of turn! I am, however, greatly enjoying the slow journey up said curve. :)

rjlittlefield
Site Admin
Posts: 23561
Joined: Tue Aug 01, 2006 8:34 am
Location: Richland, Washington State, USA
Contact:

Post by rjlittlefield »

Welcome to the wonderful world of guidebooks, where it seems that the authors are always caught "between a rock and a hard place" in trying to decide how to describe distributions whose edges are always fuzzy and often poorly known.

I just now checked The Audobon Society Field Guide to North American Insects & Spiders (6th printing, Oct 1988). It lists "Fire Beetles (Dendroides spp.)" as "Range: Throughout North America".

I'm very glad that Ichthy happened to recognize this beast. I would not have known where to look without his pointer.

Let me add my congratulations for the image, by the way. It's very well done.

--Rik

frankw
Posts: 129
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2014 9:45 am
Location: Port Townsend,Washington, USA

beetle Larva (?)

Post by frankw »

Thank you very much Rik! I guess that will be another book I need to get which will go next to Sibley's et al! I always thought birds were challenging because of the juvie vs mature differences. They don't hold a candle to bugs (insects) for confusion vis a vis appearance and range.My apologies to Ichthy for trusting my meager knowledge and lack of reference materials!

Frank :oops:

Carmen
Posts: 275
Joined: Tue Feb 10, 2015 10:32 am
Location: Buenos Aires
Contact:

Post by Carmen »

Esteemed Frank:

very impressed by the extended, and convincing, DOF. And curiously, the combination of extended DOF and particular angle make it difficult to estimate the size of the specimen. If you had not mentioned 19mm, one might imagine a much larger specimen!

The composition is also meritorious. The background suggests a habitat. Such attention to detail culminate in a beautiful photograph! =D>
Last edited by Carmen on Fri Mar 13, 2015 1:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.

frankw
Posts: 129
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2014 9:45 am
Location: Port Townsend,Washington, USA

Post by frankw »

Hello Carmen,
Thank you so much for your considered and kind words!
Best regards,
Frank

Post Reply Previous topicNext topic