A Goldenrod Soldier

One of my regrets is that I rarely have the time to sit down and read through my field guides to insects and flowers any more. Once, that was how I kept track of everything I saw outside, naming and knowing what it did, was it edible? The irony is that now, when I have the equipment to make beautiful images of my tiny discoveries, I don't have the time to give them their proper names. Once in a while, though, I take the time because I feel guilty for just saying 'beetle' when I know that it's more than that.

You can find out more about these attractive black-and-orange, leathery beetles here. Sources seem to be mixed on whether they are omnivorous, but these were certainly engaged in both perpetuating their species and pollination duties.

I finally got around to identifying the flowers they were on, too: Verbenesis occidentalis. The mostly-black insect is actually a moth, not a beetle. ID for that will have to wait, I'm off to class.

The Goldenrod Soldier Beetle, Chauliognathus pensylvanicus