Bronze beetle - an insect belonging to the order of beetles, the family of lamellae, a subfamily of beetles. His body is oval oblate, far from grace. The head is small, slightly lowered down.
Bronze beetle is amazing in flight in sunny weather. It sparkles all, shimmers like a gem. The insect flashes like a fire, then it turns fiery red, like hot metal. And in cloudy weather, its color is rather dull. But as soon as the sun comes out and it takes off, it again becomes unusual. Its amazing overflows and brightness are associated with the refraction of sunlight on the back of the insect. In principle, optical coloration is not characteristic of beetles - it is inherent in butterflies and dragonflies.
Most often, the insect can be seen on the flowers, as can be seen in the photo. The bronze beetle is not shy, it is not in a hurry to fly away, so there is the opportunity to consider it well. If necessary, take off, he can do it instantly. Some beetles need to raise elytra before flight, while others need to spread their lower wings. The bronze beetle does not need preparation for flight, as it has special cuts on the sides of the elytra, in which it inserts its lower wings and takes off, without raising the upper ones. This structure allows him to quickly overcome certain distances, because the hard wings are not spaced and do not impede the flight.
Mostly bronzes, and there are about 4, 000 species, live in the tropics. In our country about several dozen species live them. The most common is the golden bronze beetle. It is quite large, its body almost 2 cm long. The elytra is emerald-metallic in color. Having sat on a flower, it can be on it for up to two weeks, if it is not disturbed
Bronze beetle eats juicy and rotten fruits, flower petals and juices flowing from plants. Lays eggs in the second year of life in the adult stage (adult insect), usually in July. After about a month, larvae emerge from the eggs, which immediately begin to feed.
Larvae are large, thick, whitish, slightly fleecy, similar in shape to the letter S. They have no claws on their legs, and can move on their backs. They live, feed and develop in forest litter, compost, rotten wood, etc. They are very voracious, reach half their final size in a month, eating hundreds of times their weight. With their strong jaws, they chew on plant debris, turning them into an excellent chernozem.
After a certain time, the larvae are about to pupate. In the construction of the cocoon, small legs play an important role, which are practically not used for movement. Cocoons are built from the stool, which the larva accumulates inside itself in advance. By isolating a sticky substance that hardens with time, the larva with its rounded back forms a cocoon. Inside, it is as if polished and very durable.
The ripened bronze beetle is not in a hurry to leave its shelter - it is waiting for the chitin cover to strengthen. This can take a lot of time. Only after that he gets to the surface of the earth.
This family includes not only brightly colored insects. Among them there are dark, chocolate, striped, with dots, etc. The bronze beetle brings little practical harm, and there are many joys from its contemplation.
