Melobasis propinqua
Propinqua jewel beetle at Denman Prospect, ACT
Identify this sighting
| Melobasis propinqua | MarkH | 7 Oct 2025 | |
| Melobasis propinqua | Harrisi | 6 Oct 2025 |
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4 comments
7 Oct 2025
Hi Stuart, this might be the first record of a buprestid on an orchid (I think the orchid genus is Diuris), or at least the first record of this species on an orchid! Any idea what species of orchid it is? Cheers, Allen.
7 Oct 2025
Diuris pardina Allen. I have seen this sp. On donkey orchids before but can't recall orchid sp. See how the beetle here resembles the base of the flower!?
7 Oct 2025
It’s not surprising it’s on this flower. You find Melobasis propinqua on various yellow and orange flowers that they are attracted to. It seems to be eating the petals which is what they do to various pea flowers.
7 Oct 2025
Thanks Stuart! I presume it was attracted to the yellow flowers thinking it was pea flowers of some sort - else it feeds on them anyway. As Mark said, you can see chew marks on the petals which may have been this or other specimens. The colour of the beetle resembling the colour at the base of the flower may be coincidental, as adults of this species of Melobasis come in various colours ranging from metallic green through coppery to metallic grey.
Location information
- Coordinates 149.008829-35.298801
- Maps Piney Ridge Bluetts Block (402, 403, 12, 11)
- Places Denman Prospect, ACT
Sighting information
- 1 Abundance
- 6 Oct 2025 02:13 PM Recorded on
- Harrisi Recorded by
- Diuris sp. Associated plant
- 5mm to 12mm Animal size
Collections
- Harrisi NatureMapr Canberra & Southern Tablelands Melobasis propinqua Jewel beetles (Buprestidae) Beetles (Coleoptera) Insects
Species information
- Melobasis propinqua Scientific name
- Propinqua jewel beetle Common name
- Not Sensitive
- Local native
- Non-invasive or negligible
- Up to 1473.6m Recorded at altitude
- External link More information
Record quality
Quality score
4 / 7
- Images or audio
- Verified by an expert moderator
- Nearby sighting(s) of same species
- Additional attributes
- More than one media file
- GPS evidence of location
- Description