Insects and Spiders - native

Golden Buprestid Beetle (Buprestis aurulenta) on Jun 30, 2025

Originally reported as Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis)

Submitter has sample

Description of specimen

The beetle is 3/4 of an inch long, iridescent green with a red stripe down the middle of his back.

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. They don't typically attack structures.

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

https://oregon-eab-geo.hub.arcgis.com/pages/identify

Thanks for being on the lookout!

Tom Valente
July 1, 2025, 9:36 a.m.