Wooly Darkling Beetle vs Striped Alder Sawfly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Wooly Darkling Beetle Striped Alder Sawfly
Scientific Name Eleodes osculans Hemichroa crocea
Order Coleoptera Hymenoptera
Family Tenebrionidae Tenthredinidae
Size 20-35 mm 7-9 mm
Habitat Deserts & Drylands Rivers & Streams
Diet Herbivores Herbivores
Regions North America North America, Europe
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Wooly Darkling Beetle

A stout black beetle common in southwestern US deserts. It raises its abdomen in a defensive headstand posture when disturbed.

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Did You Know?

It sprays a foul-smelling quinone chemical from its rear end, earning it the nickname stink beetle.

Striped Alder Sawfly

A brightly colored sawfly with an orange body and black markings on the thorax. Larvae are pale yellowish-green with dark dorsal stripes and feed on alder and birch.

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Did You Know?

This species can reproduce both sexually and parthenogenetically, with unfertilized eggs developing into males.