Blue Beetle on my cut crape myrtle branches - Chariessa vestita

North Austin reporting a sighting

I found 4 of these today on a branch in North Austin. Very striking appearance.

… h2ogirl, 27 April, 2014 - 7:35pm

Blue Beetle

Thanks for your picture. Took some pictures of one in my backyard today and wanted to identify it. I live in North Austin so I guess they do show up here from time to time. 10/18/2012

… cerebus59, 18 October, 2012 - 10:20pm

Moved

Moved from Checkered Beetles.

… Jim McClarin, 19 August, 2007 - 9:44am

Chariessa vestita

The clerid is Chariessa vestita (Chevrolat)....not common in USA...mostly Central American

Dr.Weston Opitz
Kansas Wesleyan University
Salina, Kansas 67401

… Jim McClarin, 19 August, 2007 - 9:43am

New picture for y'all

I'm so glad I could contribute to your site. This little blue bug isn't too far from home in Central America. Since he's a good bug, I hope he and his family make a new home in my back yard here in Austin, Texas.

-Pamela Willett

… Pamelita, 20 August, 2007 - 9:15pm

Someone might suggest the following

because it has red legs and metallic blue uppers but it is clearly not the beetle in question: http://bugguide.net/node/view/39933/bgimage

… Jim McClarin, 19 August, 2007 - 8:55am

I've cropped your image so the detail is clearer.

It certainly does seem to be a clerid beetle, most of which are predatory on other beetles, especially small bark beetles that *do* damage trees. So this is a very good beetle to have around. I'll see if I can get a more precise ID for you.

… Jim McClarin, 19 August, 2007 - 6:35am

I'll take a wild guess and sa

Judging from the antennae, I'll take a wild guess and say that this is a Scarab of some sort. Never seen anything with bright red legs though. Are the colors in the photo as you remembered them?

… Jim Bliss, 18 August, 2007 - 9:05pm

YES, the colors are precise.

YES, the colors are precise. That is what made me take a picture of it. I was absolutely amazed at the color of this bug.

… Pamelita, 19 August, 2007 - 7:12am

I'd actually go with a Clerid

I'd actually go with a Clerid of some sort

… Will Chatfield-Taylor, 19 August, 2007 - 2:31am

But I didn't find a picture t

But I didn't find a picture that looked like this one. Maybe it's because I have a better picture than can be found on this site? Or is there not a picture of one here?

… Pamelita, 19 August, 2007 - 7:08am

New clerid for us

We have about 20,000 beetle images on bugguide.net, representing almost every beetle family in our region but we have a long way to go before we have a comprehensive image collection. Yours might be the first online image of this species but give us a little time to research it. I have just asked a clerid expert to have a look.

… Jim McClarin, 19 August, 2007 - 7:39am

Cool. :-)

… Pamelita, 19 August, 2007 - 8:14am

Well,

my email bounced :-( I'll have to try someone else. Okay, done. Now to wait for an answer.

… Jim McClarin, 19 August, 2007 - 8:16am

Have you heard?

Do we have a positive ID on this yet? I have a small family of them in my yard in Austin.

… h2ogirl, 27 April, 2014 - 7:50pm