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Posts Tagged: soldier beetles
Soldiering On
They're curious little critters. When solider beetles (family Cantharidae) go on patrol in your garden, don't kill them. They're not being deployed to harm you. They're the good guys. They eat aphids and other soft-bodied insects. Sometimes...
A soldier beetle seeking aphids and other soft-bodied insects on a strawberry plant. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Here an aphid, there an aphid...A soldier beetle on patrol. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
This image shows the soldier beetle's 11-segmented antennae. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A quick flight to a fence post and then the soldier beetle prepares to leave. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
'Garden Allies': Everything in Your Garden Has a Place
Don't ask if the insects you find in your garden are "good bugs or bad bugs." Everything in your garden has a place, and your place should be a healthy, thriving garden--free of pesticides,...
A lady beetle and her eggs in a Vacaville garden. Everything in nature is connected, says Frédérique Lavoipierre. If you have no aphids, no lady beetles or soldier beetles for you. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A soldier beetle (family Cantharida) feasts on aphids but is often mistaken as a "bad bug." This image was taken in a Vacaville garden. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The Red Coats Are Coming
The Red Coats are coming. The Red Coats are coming. No, not an army of soldiers. Soldier beetles. These insects (family Cantharida) resemble the uniforms of the British soldiers of the American Revolution, which is apparently how their name originated....
A soldier beetle (family Cantharida) looks out over a milkweed in search of more aphids. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The Love Bugs
"You can never be too rich, too young, too blonde or too thin," a quote often attributed to Wallis Simpson, Duchess of Windsor.Well, you can never have too many ladybugs, aka lady beetles, in your garden.These colorful beetles devour aphids and other...
Ladybugs and soldier beetles--along with aphids--on a plum tree. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Fast-moving soldier beetle crawls toward a pair of ladybugs on a plum tree. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Ladybug eggs mean more ladybugs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The Leather Wings
Some call them "soldier beetles."Some call them "leather-winged beetles."Some call them "Cantharids" (family Cantharidae).Whatever you call them, be sure to welcome them to your garden. They eat aphids, lots of aphids. Like the good soldiers they are,...
Soldier Beetle
Ready for Flight
