Black and Yellow Longhorn Beetle
When Sam caught this beetle in July of 2010, I just took the pictures for the sake of the practice, because I though that it was one that had already been photographed and posted on this site. But, on further examination, I see that aside from both being black beetles with yellow markings, they were not otherwise very similar. The other one had very thin, sharply curved yellow markings, while this one has broad yellow stripes, with the middle stripes joining to make a kind of “U” mark on each wing cover.
This looked fairly distinctive, and after some rummaging around on BugGuide, it looks like one of the Flower Longhorns in the genus Typocerus.
Specifically, I think it’s Typocerus sparsus, which is evidently specifically found in the Great Lakes region. In which case, this particular species is as close to a species endemic to this area (that is, found here and nowhere else) as we have caught to date. However, its many close relatives in the Typocerus genus look extremely similar, and are found all over North America.
Like other non-wasp insects that hang around flowers and have black-and-yellow markings, these beetles are almost certainly wasp mimics. As usual, it is believed that they are trying to convince potential predators that they are packing a sting. As far as anyone knows, they are actually harmless. But after finding out that even some insects that are commonly believed to be simply mimicking other, more dangerous/distasteful insects are actually dangerous/distasteful in their own right, I’m not so sure I believe that these are completely harmless without some evidence. Unless somebody tastes one of these beetles and declares it edible, I’m going to suspect that there is a good possibility that they have some nasty chemical defenses themselves. Or at least are able to give a nasty pinch.
That said, they do look a lot like wasps when they fly, so anybody who reflexively avoids wasps will probably shy away from these beetles in flight, too.
Like other longhorn beetles, their larvae bore into decaying wood, although I don’t think this particular species has been studied enough to know their wood preferences. Their relatives seem to like rotting pine, though.
Note added on March 13, 2013 for readers in the Southwest: With the number of people commenting below that they found a similar beetle in Texas, and that they got a painful sting/bite from it, I figured I’d better look into this.
In general, beetles that look like mine really are other, related wood-boring beetles. And if they seem to be associated with firewood, then that’s almost certainly what they are. But, in the southwest, another possibility is this similarly-colored blister beetle, (although they are not closely related). Blister beetles have a strong blistering agent (cantharidin) in their “blood”. When they are crushed, or feel threatened, they will bleed this on you and apparently raise painful blisters. They are very toxic if eaten, too (some blister beetles have been known to kill horses when they got baled up into hay that the horses then ate).
So, if you live in or near Texas, and see a beetle similar to this, don’t handle it, and don’t squash it. And definitely don’t eat it!
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I just found one of these on my back porch. I live in Illinois. It was literally moving a dead bird. Little by little. Freakiest think ever
Jessie:
I think what you actually found was one of the Burying Beetles, some of which have coloration very similar to the beetle I have here. The burying beetles are bigger, wider, and generally more orange. They do exactly what you saw: they find a small dead animal, and move it to a spot where the ground is soft enough so that they can bury it. Burying the body protects it from being found by other scavengers, so that the beetles can lay their eggs on it and raise their larvae in peace. They are, indeed, very freaky.
There was one in my house I’m in Illinois, there scary
I just found a bug kinda like this but when I went to kill it it had like baby spiders crawling out of it would it be the same one or do you know what this is? Thanks I have never seen this before
Please help me
Theresa: I think what you found is one of several types of carrion beetles, most likely one of the sexton beetles, like the one I have pictures of here. Sexton beetles have the same general color pattern as these longhorn beetles, but are more orange than yellow, and broader across the body. The “baby spiders” are harmless mites that ride around with them. The beetles bury the corpses of small animals for their grubs to eat, and the mites eat the fly maggots that would otherwise compete with the beetles for the corpse.
The beetles and the mites are both completely harmless to humans, and carrion beetles like these are a big part of the reason why we so rarely find small dead animals lying around in the woods. Some species of sexton beetles are actually endangered, so please don’t kill them.
Can those beetles attach them self to you if you go to a house with them in it?
Emilie: I wouldn’t expect longhorned beetles like these to specifically attach to humans, at least not to any greater extent than they crawl into cars or ride around on trucks. They mainly are looking for flowers (for food) or wood (to lay their eggs). They also won’t get into houses aside from the occasional accidental one coming through an open window.
The beetles that resemble this one (certain blister beetles and carrion beetles, which have similar coloration but are not closely related) aren’t likely to get into houses or hitch-hike on people, either.
I found this beetle on my kitchen floor in Urbandale, Iowa yesterday. I was freaked out at first because on 1st glance I did think it was a wasp. Then on closer examination realized it was not, but still didn’t know what it was, so it got relocated out back. I didn’t want to kill it since I was unsure if it was helpful or harmful. I always err on the side of caution if I am unsure. A very interesting looking beetle for sure! Thanks for the info.
I live in Iredell, Texas and got woke up to this bug crawling on my arm in the middle of the night. When I touched it and realized it was a bug I immediately pinched it and threw it across the room. It stung me as I pinched it. It felt just like a bee or wasp sting. I turned the lights on to find what stung me and it looked just like this photo. My thumb has a red spot like a wasp would leave. The stinging sensation did not last quite as long though.
Hi!
I’m from Greece and for my surprice,i found a few days ago two of those!A friend of mine buy me a gift,some airplants with a wood as a decor for the plants..I suppose that the beatles came with the wood…!
What should i do with the beatles?!Do they live in the countryside,so i can set them free?What do they eat?!Should i keep them inside the terrarium with the airplants?!
Any help accepted
I’ve seen several in my bedroom over the past few weeks.. yes I’ve been freaking out because it looks like it would bite and have no idea why it’s in my house! I noticed one tonight over near a wood Stump (Pecan Wood) we have as a small table in the corner of the room. So I looked it up and I found this page!
I found a long black and yellow bug with a long stiger in its but so i fliped it over and it looked like a beetle could u help me
Olivia: In the insects I’m familiar with, a long “stinger” is generally an ovipositor for laying eggs. These are harmless to humans (they aren’t adapted to pierce skin, and don’t have venom), although they do look threatening.
Mostly I see these ovipositors in ichneumon wasps (which don’t look all that much like beetles) and crickets (which do, sort of, although they also have long jumping legs). The beetles I can think of that have visible ovipositors are certain wood-boring beetles, who use them to drill into rotting wood to lay their eggs.
I just killed one that looked similar to the one above. It had bitten my 4 year old son twice.
I found one in Spokane Washington, just buzzing around the house, making wanting the wood, who knows.
I just found one on my porch in Central Russia
I’m in Hillsboro Oregon and I found one yesterday in my back yard.
I believe one was on my neck at night, and when I went to swipe it off I killed it and now I have a blister like circle on my neck that burns…should I seek medical attention?
I just woke up to something on my hip (I sleep on my side) and I grabbed it through my sheet and it bit me. I took pictures before my husband flushed it. We live in Glen Rose Texas. It looked just liked this picture.
I have found about 20 banded longhorn beetles in my house! We live in Ohio. They have come out of firewood we had delivered. I’m scared that they will decide to bore into woodwork in our house . Is this a possibility ?
Lynn:
According to the Iowa State University Extension, they only infest moist wood, the dry wood in your house and furniture is safe.
https://hortnews.extension.iastate.edu/roundheaded-borers-and-longhorned-beetles
There are some beetles that might infest the dry woodwork in a house, but they are a different group of beetles, and require at least moderately humid conditions.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_furniture_beetle
i just found one of these laying eggs in an old tree i live in Wales UK is it rare to find these here ?
Katie: They probably aren’t the exact species that I have here, but there are a bunch of similar-appearing related species, and several of them are common in Wales. Like this one:
Black and Yellow Longhorn beetle – Rutpela maculata”
Just found one in Southern Indiana!
thIS SHIT STUNG THE FUCK OUTTA MY LEG (the blister beetle) I FELT SOMETHING CRAWL UP MY LEG……. THOUGHT IT WAS A MOSQUITO OR AN ANT, SO I SWAT IT. THE SECOND THAT HAPPENS SHARP PINCHES START OCCURRING ON MY LEG. in FRONT OF ALL MY FRIENDS, I RIP OFF MY PANTS SCREAMING. THAT DUMB BUG BITCH FELL ON THE GROUND N I ASSUME IT WAS A WASP BC MY LEG IS BURNING AND 4 “”STINGS”” WERE ON MY THIGH. THIS HAPPENED A WEEK AGO AND THESE SHITS STILL VIOLENTLY ITCH. ANYWAYS DON’T FUCK WITH THIS BUG YALL!!
I found one in my house in Germany today
I SAT ON ONE LAST NIGHT AND IT STUNG ME TWICE ON MY THIGH .. IT’S DEAD NOW, HURTS LIKE A DANG WASP STING.
I left dishwater in my sink overnight as I had used it to wash a couple of not very dirty dishes and knew I would need some soapy water in the morning. I found a kind of one of these longhorn beetles floating dead in the water. It looks very much like your pictures except it does not have the markings on the lower back end nor the “neck”, and it is wider and shorter. It has the two center yellow markings. We use firewood in the winter, but don’t know where it would have come from in July! Hope my house isn’t rotting somewhere I can’t see!
Ok I just found a whole bunch of these things on some wood I had cut of my front yard tree. (Fruitless mulberry) there are no lines of them on the ground like with ants. None flying around. But are clearly all over the pile of cut limbs. At first I thought they might be a wasp or perhaps termites. But no they are not..lol. I have taken photos of this insect but can’t post on here. It’s long back legs are similar to that of a cricket or grasshopper. And I live in So.California just north of L.A.
Found one of these on my windowsill in the UK. First time I seen one of these.
It was chased by a bird it flew next to my eye in South Africa in limpopo
I just saw one of these bugs in my house I was sitting on my recliner and it bit my foot, and it started burning like crazy, I was reading that they don’t bite but this one sure bit me no doubt, how to I get rid of the pain?
We live in ben wheeler, TX and I was stung two nights ago, and my fiancee last night before we finally found and destroyed this thing.
Found these scary bugs in my bushes and garden in Midwest IN. Not fun!