Striped Click Beetle vs Southern Oak Bush-Cricket

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Striped Click Beetle Southern Oak Bush-Cricket
Scientific Name Chalcolepidius striatus Meconema meridionale
Order Coleoptera Orthoptera
Family Elateridae Tettigoniidae
Size 28-40 mm 11-15 mm
Habitat Forests Forests
Diet Wood Feeders Herbivores
Regions South America, Brazil Southern and Western Europe (expanding northward)
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Striped Click Beetle

A large neotropical click beetle with dark elytra bearing distinct white-scaled longitudinal stripes. The robust body and powerful clicking mechanism allow it to launch several inches into the air.

💡

Did You Know?

The clicking mechanism of large Chalcolepidius beetles produces an audible snap that can be heard several meters away.

Southern Oak Bush-Cricket

A small, wingless relative of the oak bush-cricket that has rapidly spread northward across Europe, likely aided by accidental transport in vehicles. It is fully arboreal and flightless.

💡

Did You Know?

Being flightless, it likely spread across Europe by hitchhiking on cars and trucks parked under infested trees.