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Photo#2067674
Arizona Beetle  - Vesperelater arizonicus

Arizona Beetle - Vesperelater arizonicus
Harshaw Avenue, Harshaw Canyon, Santa Cruz County, Arizona, USA
August 15, 2021
Size: 16 mm

Images of this individual: tag all
Arizona Beetle  - Vesperelater arizonicus Arizona Beetle  - Vesperelater arizonicus Arizona Beetle  - Vesperelater arizonicus Arizona Beetle  - Vesperelater arizonicus Arizona Beetle  - Vesperelater arizonicus Arizona Beetle  - Vesperelater arizonicus

How do those work?
How do those work? Do they pulsate or is it just a constant glow? Are you shining a black light on them?

 
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Collected at night on a black light setup. It was glowing at the time, but this and a couple other specimens weren't glowing next morning during daylight hours photographing them. I never saw any that were pulsating. I believe I kept this specimen in a darkened container to try to induce it to glow, and it worked. Apparently there are at least 4 species of Elaterid in the US that glow like this, found in Arizona, Texas, Florida, Georgia. The 3 in Bugguide seen in Texas and Florida are in a genus Deilelater. I do remember encountering one only one other time in my life in either FL or GA glowing at night on the wall of a gas station, but never in my home state of PA.

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