Below is a compilation of a few tiny creatures I’ve come across in the last week or so. All photos were taken using a macro lens on my iPhone. This is a carpet beetle in the genus Anthrenus, likely Anthrenus verbasci, in the flower of a China girl holly. Adults of this species eat pollen, so it’s a logical place to find this one. For those unfamiliar with the scale of holly flowers, this beetle is tiny – only a…
My husband was chopping down a rotten pitch pine last week and found dozens of beetles under the bark. Knowing my interest for beetles, he brought one home for me to see (and photography with my macro lens!). We were able to identify it as a ribbed pine borer (Rhagium inquisitor), a member of the longhorn beetle family (Cerambycidae) that is widespread throughout North America and Eurasia. The ribbed pine borer is unusual within this family, however, as it has…