Velvet beetle - Velvet beetle

Japanese: ビロードコガネ - びろーどこがね

An insect of the family Scarabaeidae in the order Coleoptera (illustration). It is small, with a body length of 8 to 9 mm. The body is black or dark reddish brown, and the forewings are slightly wider toward the rear. There are three teeth on the outer edge of the tibia of the front legs. It is distributed from Hokkaido to Kyushu, and adults appear from around the end of April. Adults feed on leaves and lay eggs in the soil. The larvae feed on roots and grow, so they often damage seedlings. It takes 1 to 2 years from egg to adult. In autumn, the adult larvae overwinter and emerge above ground the following spring. The larvae overwinter in the second or third instar (final instar), but the weight of the third instar is about five times that of the second instar.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

甲虫目コガネムシ科の昆虫（イラスト）。小型で体長8～9mm。体は黒色または暗赤褐色で，上翅は後方へやや幅広くなる。前脚の脛節（けいせつ）の外縁には3個の歯がある。北海道から九州まで分布し，成虫は4月末ころから出現する。成虫は葉を食し，土中へ産卵する。幼虫は根を食べて成育するため，しばしば苗木などが加害される。卵から成虫までの期間は1～2年。秋，成虫となったものはそのまま越冬し，翌春地上へ現れる。幼虫は2齢または3齢(終齢)で越冬するが，3齢の体重は2齢の約5倍。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

<<: Velvet moth - Velvet moth

>>: Velvet - Biroudo