When I first saw this insect, it was on a leaf above my head, and I held my phone in a position that I thought might take a picture, and pressed the button. Seeing that it was either a very interesting bee, or something else, I moved closer and was able to get some great profile pictures. To my delight, it turned out to be a furry, club-antennae’d sawfly!
This is a Trichiosoma (=hairy body) triangulum genus sawfly. I’m guessing that the larvae grow up in the stem or roots of alder trees, because closely related sawflies are associated with birch, a similar tree.
I’m going to make two more guesses with little evidence. 1. This is a female. Comments on BugGuide say the males are thinner and females more robust. 2. The species name (triangulum) refers either to the triangle of simple eyes that you can barely see here between the two eyes, or the fact that when it’s at rest, the wings form a triangle.
This snazzy beetle is an Elderberry Longhorn. It happened to be resting in an appropriate location, on Elderberry. I love the way the red edging on its elytra looks scalloped. In the sun, the entire abdomen shines gold, as the tail end of the beetle appears above. Fittingly, the scientific name is Desmocerus aureipennis, or “gold wing.”
There are a few different sub-species of the Elderberry Longhorn. I don’t think this one has different morphs for males and females, but most or all of the others do. And, apparently the Valley Elderberry Longhorn, native to California, is threatened.
Happy Earth Day, 2024!
Ticklehead 