Rosalia longicorn

The Rosalia longicorn (Rosalia alpina) or Alpine longhorn beetle, is a large longicorn (family Cerambycidae) that is distinguished by its distinctive markings.

Rosalia longicorn
Rosalia alpina
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Cerambycidae
Genus: Rosalia
Species:
R. alpina
Binomial name
Rosalia alpina

Description
Rosalia longicorn in camouflage against a beech.

The Rosalia longicorn is 15 to 38 mm (0.59 to 1.50 in) long. The antennae can be up to twice as long as the rest of the body in males, and the same length in females. The elytra are flat, blue-gray, with variable black spots, including a prominent one on the thorax, a silky one in front, and a small one in back. Both the antennae and the legs have the same coloration as the body. The coloration serves as good camouflage with their preferred habitat, the European Beech.

They are distributed from Cantabrian Mountains east to Caucasus. Its numbers across Europe has greatly depleted in recent years, and it is a protected species in Germany, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia.

The adults are active from June to September. By day the beetles sit near flowers and feed on the pollen. They make a chirping sound by scraping their rear legs and elytra together. After mating, the female lays the eggs within a crack in the bark of a beech. The larvae eat the bark and pupate there as well when it has reached about three years of age. The mature adult emerges from the pupa.

Rosalia longicorn is the logo of Danube-Ipoly National Park in Hungary.

References
  1. World Conservation Monitoring Centre. (1996). "Rosalia alpina". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 1996: e.T19743A9009447. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.1996.RLTS.T19743A9009447.en. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
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