''Stenopterus rufus'' is a

beetle Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 40 ...

species of ''round-necked longhorns'' belonging to the family

Cerambycidae The longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae), also known as long-horned or longicorns (whose larvae are often referred to as roundheaded borers), are a large family of beetles, with over 35,000 species described. Most species are characterized by anten ...

, subfamily

Cerambycinae Cerambycinae is a subfamily of the longhorn beetle family (Cerambycidae). The subfamily has a world-wide distribution including: Asia, Europe and the Americas (with 430 species in 130 genera in the neotropical realm). Within the family, the only ...

Subspecies and varietas

Subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

and varietas include: * ''Stenopterus rufus rufus'' (Linnaeus, 1767) :''Stenopterus rufus rufus var.'' caubeti Podaný, 1957 :''Stenopterus rufus rufus var. cavalairensis'' Jurecek :''Stenopterus rufus rufus var. geniculatus Kraatz'', 1863 :''Stenopterus rufus rufus var. meridionalis'' Ragusa :''Stenopterus rufus rufus var. nigricornis'' Depoli, 1926 :''Stenopterus rufus rufus var. nigrolineatus'' Plavilstshikov * ''Stenopterus rufus syriacus'' Pic, 1903 * ''Stenopterus rufus transcaspicus'' Plavilstshikov, 1940

Description

''Stenopterus rufus'' can reach a length of . The body has a velvet-like hair. Elytra are very narrow. Antennae are about as long as the body and clearly segmented. The head and pronotum are black colored and the abdomen has a black background color horizontally crossed by yellow stripes. The first two segments of their antennae are black, the color of the following ones is variable but generally yellow with items III to V black at the apex, but sometimes items III to XI are entirely yellow or entirely black. Elytra are red with black base and apex. The legs are mainly red.

Biology

Larvae are polyphagous wood borers in dead branches of deciduous trees (

Quercus An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

Castanea The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Description C ...

Robinia ''Robinia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae, tribe Robinieae, native to North America. Commonly known as locusts, they are deciduous trees and shrubs growing tall. The leaves are pinnate with 7–21 oval leaflets. The flowe ...

Juglans Walnut trees are any species of tree in the plant genus ''Juglans'', the type genus of the family (biology), family Juglandaceae, the seeds of which are referred to as walnuts. All species are deciduous trees, tall, with pinnate leaves , with ...

Prunus ''Prunus'' is a genus of flowering plant, flowering trees and shrubs from the family (biology), family Rosaceae. The genus includes plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots and almonds (collectively Drupe, stonefruit). The genus has a cosm ...

Salix Willows, also called sallows and osiers, of the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 350 species (plus numerous hybrids) of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions. Most species are known ...

Pistacia ''Pistacia'' is a genus of flowering plants in the cashew family, Anacardiaceae. It contains 10 to 20 species that are native to Africa and Eurasia from the Canary Islands, all of Africa, and southern Europe, warm and semidesert areas across Asia ...

, ''

Corylus avellana ''Corylus avellana'', the common hazel, is a species of flowering plant in the birch tree, birch family Betulaceae. The shrubs usually grow tall. The nut is round, in contrast to the longer Corylus maxima, filbert nut. Common hazel is native to E ...

'', ''

Ostrya carpinifolia ''Ostrya carpinifolia'', the European hop-hornbeam, is a tree in the family Betulaceae. It is the only species of the genus ''Ostrya'' that is native to Europe. The specific epithet ''carpinifolia'' means "hornbeam-leaved", from , the Latin word ...

'', ''

Paliurus spina-christi ''Paliurus spina-christi'', commonly known as Jerusalem thorn, garland thorn, Christ's thorn, or crown of thorns, is a species of '' Paliurus'' native to the Mediterranean region, Southwest Asia and Central Asia, from Morocco and Spain east to ...

'' etc.). The adults can be encountered from May through August, completing their life cycle in two years. They are very common flower-visitors, especially

Apiaceae Apiaceae () or Umbelliferae is a family of mostly aromatic flowering plants named after the type genus ''Apium,'' and commonly known as the celery, carrot, or parsley family, or simply as umbellifers. It is the 16th-largest family of flowering p ...

species, ''

Heracleum sphondylium ''Heracleum sphondylium'', commonly known as hogweed or common hogweed, is a herbaceous perennial plant in the carrot family Apiaceae, which includes fennel, cow parsley, ground elder and Heracleum mantegazzianum, giant hogweed. It is native to m ...

'' and ''

Ranunculus repens ''Ranunculus repens'', the creeping buttercup, is a flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to Europe, Asia and northwestern Africa. Habitat It is a very common weed of agricultural land and gardens, spreading quickly by it ...

'', feeding on pollen and the nectar.

Distribution

This beetle is widespread in most of Europe, in

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

Transcaucasia The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and West Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Armenia, ...

, Iran and in the

Near East The Near East () is a transcontinental region around the Eastern Mediterranean encompassing the historical Fertile Crescent, the Levant, Anatolia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula. The term was invented in the 20th ...

(Albania, Armenia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Corsica, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iran, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Sardinia, Serbia, Sicily, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Syria, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine).

Habitat

These beetles mainly inhabit meadows, hedge rows, beech forests and wet forests.

Gallery

File:Cerambycidae - Stenopterus rufus-2.JPG, Mating pair File:Stenopterus rufus (antennae).jpg, Close-up of antenna File:Stenopterus rufus (Linné, 1767) (3833121047).jpg, Mounted specimen File:Stenopterus rufus - 2016-06-20.webm, Clip

References

External links

Nederlands Soortenregister

INPN

Stenopterini Beetles of Europe Beetles described in 1767 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus {{Cerambycinae-stub