Cardinal beetle Pyrochroa serraticornis

Features

Adults often hide in low vegetation, on flowers or leaves of trees, they are active from April to June. Mostly they don’t feed, they only occasionally lick the nectar and manna of aphids. They are very toxic, which is already indicated by their warning coloration (mimicry!).

Species	Insect
Living space	Bright forest, Clean or mixed forest, Conifer forest, Dark forest, Deciduous forest, Mixed forest
Size	17-21 mm

Description

Adults: a highly recognizable dazzling red beetle. The tentacles and legs are black, the head (!), the breast shield and caps are velvety red, and the shield (scutellum) between the caps is red. In males the tentacles are comb-toothed, in females the tentacles are sawn. The larvae are worm-like, flat, yellowish, with a small head and strong jaws, and straight, thorny growths at the end of the hindquarters. They live under the bark of dead trees, where they prey on smaller invertebrates.