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To my mind, the asparagus beetle, Crioceris asparagi, is one of our most beautiful insects. The Mondrianesque juxtaposition of its red border, creamy yellow squares and inky blue-black outlining is just astonishing.Although only 5-6mm long, it's a

beetles highlights serious declines. In three-quarters of the 68 species studied, there were significant losses since 1995. Half of these are down by more than 30 per cent - this is not a random statistic, but the figure regularly bandied about as a

Living in a city, one of the country things I really miss is the easy search for dung beetles. Growing up at the foot of the South Downs I could quite happily spend an entire day out dunging. Cows, sheep and horses grazed the rolling hills around my

I think it’s going to be a good year for stag beetles in East Dulwich. On May 16th there were three flying around in the evening, two males and a female. Then on the 29th I found the chap, pictured left, buzzing about as I was bringing

Just over a week ago I was outside one evening singing 'Happy Birthday' to my mum down the phone. Half way through I was interrupted by a huge male stag beetle flying low over the garden with a loud clockwork buzz. Fantastic.It's hard to believe

"So what are these things on my lavender?" said the complete stranger, plonking down a jam jar full of beetles on the table. Ordinarily I would have been pleased, but slightly surprised, to be accosted like this, but Saturday 17th May was open

It was getting dark, the cat was skulking after something in the shadows around the hutch and the guinea pig was squealing its head off. Something sinister on the patio? No, just another stag beetle.I often say how privileged I feel to have

It's always nice to be shown a 'find' by an excited child, so when I was told of a bright green iridescent beetle found in a neighbour's garden I could hardly wait to see what it was.As it turns out, it was Oedemera nobilis. It's very common

, it was the woodworm beetles indoors that fascinated me most. Technically they weren't in the garden, but they were so impressive that I can't resist going on about them. They were, after all, Britain's largest and most sinister woodworm — the death

down into. We've only been here a couple of hours when someone spots a huge black beetle crawling up the wall--the bloody nose beetle Timarcha tenebricosa, so called for the reflex bleeding of bitter red fluid from it's mouth if picked up. A great