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bug identification

9 years ago

Today I was out at my friends farm. I was putting my laundry in the car and I saw this black bug. It looked like it was maybe 1 1/2 inches long. It was a real shiny black with what looked like a red spot or stripe on its back. I was real close to it. I have never seen a bug like it before. I looked it up and all I could find was one that has 6 red spots, and that's not it. Can anyone help me identify it?

Featured Answer

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

9 years ago

gardening, if you really hope for an id without a picture, you'll need to do a very careful job at describing your insect. In your first post, you said that it was real shiny black with a red spot on its back.....I immediately assumed that it might be a beetle.

Perhaps you can try to decide in which insect group it belongs.....dragonfly, moth, whatever......and then we can narrow it down. ;-)

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Comments (9)

Texas_Gem
9 years ago
Is this it?

http://bugguide.net/node/view/93846/bgimage
bengardening thanked Texas_Gem
bengardening
Original Author
9 years ago
I don't think so. It looked more like a dragonfly. I think maybe it was some kind of butterfly. I never saw it wings spread though. Thank you though..
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Parker: That is a much better image for ID, showing all body segments and antennae. It has Flower Chafer (a Scarab beetle) written all over it. My initial impression of the first image was a tick! (wrong leg count) https://bugguide.net/node/view/4468 (see Identification sentence) @jinx: If the image reminded you of E. basalis off the top of your head, you are much more familiar with beetle species than I am! E. basalis has only one image submitted to bugguide and its US range is just Texas. I did do a thorough search of all the Euphoria species, and some did look similar to the Parker image. Your correct subfamily ID did help narrow the search. I do prefer Valgus hemipterus (suggested above) for the ID. https://bugguide.net/node/view/410352/bgimage (the 4 black patch alignment on the lower abdomen is quite distinctive) The Info and the Data tabs on the above link will be of particular interest to Parker.
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Rusty
9 years ago
It would also help to know where you are, geographically.

Rusty
bengardening thanked Rusty
bengardening
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
I live in SD and I don't know how describe it. I have never seen anything like it before. It was in my car and then it went back and forth on the front seat and when I got to the drivers side and opened the door, it flew out and over to the trees on the farm I was at. Like I said it was shiny black and about 1 1/2 to 2 inches long It never had a long tail like a dragonfly though. I only saw one red spot not like that one I saw when I looked it up that had 6 spots. MY DH said he thought it would have been a beetle but I am not sure about that. It is long and narrow not round.
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
9 years ago
Most beetles aren't round. Take a look at THIS beetle from bugguide.net for comparison. It's a type of blister beetle and would be found in your location.

If there is a resemblance, then we're on the beetle track. If it's very different, it might help you describe your insect.
bengardening
Original Author
9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago
No that's not it. The red spot was further back on its wings. It was skinnier. I guess it maybe wasn't a beetle. It wasn't orange it was a bright red.
User
9 years ago
Check this page, maybe the bug is listed. South Dakota Insects
bob_cville
9 years ago
Another possibility might be this:

http://www.insectidentification.org/insect-description.asp?identification=Squash-Vine-Borer-Moth

It is definitely a bad omen if you see one. Especially if you are growing squashes.
bengardening thanked bob_cville

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