Red-tipped Flower Beetle vs Ordinate Large-headed Bee

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Red-tipped Flower Beetle Ordinate Large-headed Bee
Scientific Name Malachius bipustulatus Ctenocolletes ordensis
Order Coleoptera Hymenoptera
Family Melyridae Stenotritidae
Size 5-7 mm 10-13 mm
Habitat Underground Heathland
Diet Nectar Feeders Nectar Feeders
Regions Europe Northern Western Australia
Conservation Least Concern Data Deficient

Red-tipped Flower Beetle

A small metallic green beetle with bright red tips on each elytron. Males can evert orange vesicles from their thorax as a display.

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Did You Know?

Males produce pheromone-laden secretions from thoracic vesicles that females lick during courtship.

Ordinate Large-headed Bee

A rarely collected bee from the Kimberley region of northern Western Australia. It is known from very few specimens and its biology remains largely unstudied.

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Did You Know?

So few specimens have been collected that almost nothing is known about its nesting behavior or floral preferences.