Insects and Spiders - native

Golden Buprestid Beetle (Buprestis aurulenta) on Feb 25, 2024

Originally reported as A metallic wood-boring beetle (Agrilus cyanescens)

Submitter has sample

Description of specimen

Not sure if this is one of those emerald ash borer … so I thought I’d let y’all check it out … I’ll attach the pics … got lots of pics if want more and I’ve got one in a container, could be more in some wood rounds …

Commentary

Thank you for your report! This is not EAB. It's a native member of the Metallic Wood-boring beetle family, the Golden Buprestid, Buprestis aurulenta. These beetles are larger and less slender than EAB. They are not tree killers. Their grubs live in dead conifers.

There are a number of iridescent green look-alike beetles in Oregon that are not pests. I am attaching a link to the ODA EAB webpage with some photos of other Oregon insects that could be mistaken for EAB

https://www.oregon.gov/oda/programs/IPPM/SurveyTreatment/Documents/EABLookAlikes.pdf

Thanks for being on the lookout!

Tom Valente
Feb. 26, 2024, 8:34 a.m.

Resources

Golden Buprestid Beetle information from iNaturalist

Location

In the stand of trees on the east side of Arnold Park

Expert Reviewer

Tom Valente
Oregon Department of Agriculture

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