Golden soldier beetle of the soldier beetle (Cantharidae) family is indigenous to parts of North America. It gets its name from the goldenrod flower that is its main food source.
Size: About 12.7 mm (0.5 inches)
Color: They have an orange body with two prominent elongated black spots on their thorax and elytra.
Other Characteristic Features: The goldenrod soldier beetles appear elongated with soft and flexible elytra. Their chewing mouthparts, alongcol3 the long, straight antennae, remain prominently visible on the head.
The dark-colored larvae, long and slender, have a velvety appearance because of the tiny and dense bristles covering their body. They mostly remain under the soil preying upon several insects. Though terrestrial, the larva may even be seen climbing plants at times.
The pupal stage occurs in the leaf litters or rotten logs under the soil and finally, the adult beetles emerge in summer.
The eggs are laid in the soil in clusters or even upon leaf litters.
| Other Names | Pennsylvania leatherwing |
| Distribution | Throughout North America |
| Habitat | Meadows, gardens, fields, and in all those places where their host plants grow |
| Common Predators | Adults: Spiders, birds, bats Larva: Ground beetles, spiders |
| Seasons active from | July –September |
| Host Plants | Goldenrod, and also other flowers like Queen Anne’s lace, damned yellow composite, rattlesnake master, and milkweed |
| Diet of larvae and adults | Larva: Grasshoppers, small insects like caterpillars and aphids Adults: Pollen, nectar, and also eggs of small insects |
Though they feed on nectar and pollen, the goldenrod soldier beetles do not chew the flower petals or damage them. These harmless beetles neither sting nor bite.
Image Source: arthurevans.files.wordpress.com, a4.pbase.com, budsbugs.files.wordpress.com, alchetron.com
Golden soldier beetle of the soldier beetle (Cantharidae) family is indigenous to parts of North America. It gets its name from the goldenrod flower that is its main food source.
Size: About 12.7 mm (0.5 inches)
Color: They have an orange body with two prominent elongated black spots on their thorax and elytra.
Other Characteristic Features: The goldenrod soldier beetles appear elongated with soft and flexible elytra. Their chewing mouthparts, alongcol3 the long, straight antennae, remain prominently visible on the head.
The dark-colored larvae, long and slender, have a velvety appearance because of the tiny and dense bristles covering their body. They mostly remain under the soil preying upon several insects. Though terrestrial, the larva may even be seen climbing plants at times.
The pupal stage occurs in the leaf litters or rotten logs under the soil and finally, the adult beetles emerge in summer.
The eggs are laid in the soil in clusters or even upon leaf litters.
| Other Names | Pennsylvania leatherwing |
| Distribution | Throughout North America |
| Habitat | Meadows, gardens, fields, and in all those places where their host plants grow |
| Common Predators | Adults: Spiders, birds, bats Larva: Ground beetles, spiders |
| Seasons active from | July –September |
| Host Plants | Goldenrod, and also other flowers like Queen Anne’s lace, damned yellow composite, rattlesnake master, and milkweed |
| Diet of larvae and adults | Larva: Grasshoppers, small insects like caterpillars and aphids Adults: Pollen, nectar, and also eggs of small insects |
Though they feed on nectar and pollen, the goldenrod soldier beetles do not chew the flower petals or damage them. These harmless beetles neither sting nor bite.
Image Source: arthurevans.files.wordpress.com, a4.pbase.com, budsbugs.files.wordpress.com, alchetron.com
