Neotropical Metallic Wood Borer vs Rhetenor Blue Morpho

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Neotropical Metallic Wood Borer Rhetenor Blue Morpho
Scientific Name Euchroma gigantea Morpho rhetenor
Order Coleoptera Lepidoptera
Family Buprestidae Nymphalidae
Size 40-80 mm 120-140 mm wingspan
Habitat Forests Forests
Diet Wood Feeders Sap Feeders
Regions Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname South America (Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Suriname)
Conservation Not Evaluated Least Concern

Neotropical Metallic Wood Borer

The largest jewel beetle in the Americas with iridescent green, red, and purple elytra. It is commonly found on dead or dying tropical hardwoods.

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Did You Know?

Indigenous peoples of the Amazon use its iridescent wing covers to make traditional jewelry and ceremonial ornaments.

Rhetenor Blue Morpho

A strikingly vivid Morpho species known for its intensely saturated metallic blue coloring, considered by many to be the most brilliant of all Morpho species. The underwings are plain brown, lacking the prominent eyespots of related species. Males are frequently seen gliding along river corridors in lowland rainforests.

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Did You Know?

Its wings reflect nearly 70% of blue light, making it one of the most reflective biological surfaces known.