greenish flower chafer

(Trichiotinus viridans)

Conservation Status
IUCN Red List

not listed

NatureServe

NNR - Unranked

SNR - Unranked

Minnesota

not listed

 
greenish flower chafer
Photo by Greg Watson
 
Description

Greenish flower chafer is a small, hairy, bee-like, flower scarab beetle. It occurs in the Midwest of the United States, including in southern Michigan, Indiana, southern Wisconsin, Illinois, southeastern Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, eastern Nebraska, and eastern Kansas. It also occurs in southern Ontario Canada.

Greenish flower chafer is thought to be associated with midwestern oak savanna habitats. Adults are active from May to early August in other areas, but in Minnesota all records and sightings are from June and July. They feed on flower pollen and petals. The larvae feed on dead and decaying wood of deciduous trees.

Adults are 516 to (7.6 to 9.9 mm) in length, not including the head. The body is oval oblong, somewhat flattened, and hairy both above and below.

The top of the head, the upper part of the face (frons), and the plate on the face (clypeus) are black with a green luster. They are finely and densely pitted (punctate). The clypeus is wider than long. The lower half is broadly rounded, and the lower margin is slightly wavy in the middle. Each antenna has 3 long projections on one side that can be brought together and closed tightly.

The plate covering the first segment of the thorax (pronotum) is convex, slightly wider than long, and black with a green luster. It is not bright metallic green. The surface is moderately densely and coarsely punctate, and it is densely covered with erect, very fine, ash gray or yellowish hairs. The pubescence on the rear side (posterlateral) angles is especially long and dense, and there may be white spots on those angles. The plate between the wing bases (scutellum) is black, is elongate triangular, and has slightly rounded sides. It is covered with long, dense, ash gray or yellowish hairs.

The wing covers (elytra), taken together, are almost square and are slightly wider than long. They are shiny and a combination of black and brown, and they may have some greenish reflections. There are two narrow, oblique, white bands on each side extending from the lateral margin inward a short distance. Each elytron has a short, white, longitudinal stripe in the inner (sutural) margin just below the scutellum. The outer sides of each elytron exhibit a distinct bend downward, followed by a pronounced outward projection. This characteristic is unique to this particular genus and sets it apart from other scarab beetle groups. Each elytron has several longitudinal grooves. The third and fifth intervals are slightly convex to flat. The fourth interval is sparsely punctate.

The last abdominal segment, called the pygidium, is exposed, not covered by the elytra. It is rounded when viewed from above, convex when viewed from the side, and about as long as wide. It is mostly black, but there is a white patch on each lateral edge. On the underside of the abdomen, there is a white band only on the fifth segment.

The last part of each leg (tarsus), corresponding to the foot, has five segments. On the hind legs, the tarsus is much longer than the fourth leg segment (tibia).

 

Size

Total length: 516 to (7.6 to 9.9 mm)

 

Similar Species

 
Habitat

 

Biology

Season

Late May to early July

 

Behavior

 

 

Life Cycle

 

 

Larva Food

Decaying wood of hardwoods

 

Adult Food

Flower pollen

Distribution

Distribution Map

 

Sources

24, 29, 30, 82, 83.

Hoffman C. (1935) The biology and taxonomy of the genus Trichiotinus (Scarabaeidae-Coleoptera). Entomologica Americana 15: 134‒209

Counties in dark green on the map represent recent records. Counties in light green represent records prior to 1936.

7/18/2024  
     

Occurrence

 

Taxonomy

Order

Coleoptera (beetles)

Suborder

Polyphaga (water, rove, scarab, long-horned, leaf, and snout beetles)

Infraorder

Scarabaeiformia

Superfamily

Scarabaeoidea (scarabs, stag beetles, and allies)

Family

Scarabaeidae (scarabs)

Subfamily

Cetoniinae (fruit and flower chafers)

Tribe

Trichiini (bee beetles and flower scarabs)

Subtribe

Trichiina

Genus

Trichiotinus (bee-like flower scarabs)

   

Subordinate Taxa

 

   

Synonyms

Trichius viridans

   

Common Names

greenish flower chafer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glossary

Clypeus

On insects, a hardened plate on the face above the upper lip (labrum).

 

Elytra

The hardened or leathery forewings of beetles used to protect the fragile hindwings, which are used for flying. Singular: elytron.

 

Frons

The upper front part of an insect’s face, roughly corresponding to the forehead.

 

Pronotum

The exoskeletal plate on the upper side of the first segment of the thorax of an insect.

 

Pubescence

On plants: the fuzzy hairs on a leaf, bud, stem, fruit, flower, or other structure. On insects and arachnids: the hair-like processes (setae) on the body.

 

Punctate

Dotted with pits (punctures), translucent sunken glands, or colored spots of pigment.

 

Scutellum

The exoskeletal plate covering the rearward (posterior) part of the middle segment of the thorax in some insects. In Coleoptera, Hemiptera, and Homoptera, the dorsal, often triangular plate behind the pronotum and between the bases of the front wings. In Diptera, the exoskeletal plate between the abdomen and the thorax.

 

Tarsus

On insects, the last two to five subdivisions of the leg, attached to the tibia; the foot. On spiders, the last segment of the leg. Plural: tarsi.

 

Tibia

The fourth segment of an insect leg, after the femur and before the tarsus (foot). The fifth segment of a spider leg or palp.

 

 

 

 

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Greg Watson

greenish flower chafer on oxeye daisy  

 

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Greg Watson
6/14/2024

Location: Apple Blossom Overlook Park

greenish flower chafer on oxeye daisy
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Created: 7/18/2024

Last Updated:

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