Beetle ID please!?

frankw · Post by **frankw** » Sat Apr 04, 2015 9:25 pm

This guy was crawling across the street in front of my house, I figured better in the studio than flat...
Here is the whole beetle (8mm)

and the "head shot"

rjlittlefield · Post by **rjlittlefield** » Sun Apr 05, 2015 12:28 am

Nice images!

Appearance and behavior suggest to me a "ground beetle", family Carabidae. Visually very similar to http://bugguide.net/node/view/282732.

--Rik

frankw · Post by **frankw** » Sun Apr 05, 2015 7:45 am

Thanks Rik, both for your kind comment as well as the ID. Certainly appears to be the same as the "bug guide pool party". My problem with Coleoptera is that when I start leafing through the guides, I see so many really neat beetles that I get completely side tracked!
regards,
Frank

NikonUser · Post by **NikonUser** » Sun Apr 05, 2015 7:58 am

Perhaps the best book for identifying an American insect, at least to family is Arnett:

http://www.amazon.com/American-Insects- ... tt+insects

rovebeetle · Post by **rovebeetle** » Thu Apr 23, 2015 4:53 am

It is a ground beetle and the genus name is Amara.

rjlittlefield · Post by **rjlittlefield** » Thu Apr 23, 2015 10:01 am

Ah, so I got lucky then! That's the same genus as the image that I linked.

Frank, I emphasize lucky. Identifying most beetles to genus based on images is definitely a matter for specialists.

--Rik