Black Beetles & caterpillars for ID please...

[SilverW0lf]

I went on a walk at World's End on Saturday and found the following...

#1 First Black Caterpillar


#2 Second Black Caterpillar


At first I wasn't sure if they were the same type of caterpillar (and now I'm still not!)

#3 First Black Beetle


All found on the Offa's Dyke path through the heather.

#4 Second Black Beetle


Found on the Offa's Dyke path near the heather and pine trees.


Not the most colourful of discoveries! But can anyone hel p with ID's?

[Dogghound]

Both caterpillars are the fox moth Macrothylacia rubi

3. Is Silpha sp There's afew very similar ones.

4. A carabid of some sort someone will get it to genus im sure.

[Paul mabbott]

The ground beetle is a Nebria sp - most likely N. brevicollis but if it was in damp area then maybe N. salina.

Originally Posted by Dogghound

3. Is Silpha sp There's afew very similar ones.

4. A carabid of some sort someone will get it to genus im sure.

[SilverW0lf]

Cheers for the Fox Moth Caterpillar ID, looking at UKmoths there's two photos's of them that perfectly match the two different "hair styles" shown in my photos!

All along the path there were damp patches and the occasional small stream if that makes one or the other ID more likely...

[Paul mabbott]

Originally Posted by SilverW0lf

All along the path there were damp patches and the occasional small stream if that makes one or the other ID more likely...

No, both species can be found in damp places. I think it's more like Nebria brevicollis which is by far the most common species anyway.

The most common silphid in UK is Silpha atrata (= S. tristis)The Coleopterist - Photo gallery - Silpha atrata
but I wouldn't want to swear to that: the other two British species are less common, local. It's not S. tyrolensis but could be S. obscura.

[Dogghound]

Silpha atrata was the one I was thinking due to it being the most common but its hard to tell them apart.

[Paul mabbott]

Originally Posted by Dogghound

Silpha atrata was the one I was thinking due to it being the most common but its hard to tell them apart.

As I recall (I looked it up this morning but that seems a long time now ) S. atrata has ridges on the elytra which are the same height as the sutural (central) ridges and the puncturation on the forebody is less dense than on S. obscura which, has shallower ridges on the elytra and looks much duller overall. So, again, it's one of those comparative things - if you could compare this individual directly with specimens of the other two species, then it might be obvious. Equally, someone who has examined hundreds of these could probably get the species immediately .... but not me!