For Anyone Interested in the Wildlife of the U.K.
Rose Chafers
Scientific name: Cetonia aurata
Size: Approx 20mm long
Distribution: Found throughout the UK, although thought to be declining in numbers
Months seen: May to October
Life Span: 2 years as a larva, then 6 - 12 months as an adult beetle
Habitat: Meadows, parks and gardens. The larvae live and feed inside rotting timber and compost
Food: The larvae eat rotting vegetation and the adults eat pollen, nectar and petals
Special features: Rose Chafers are one of our larger and more attractive beetles. The upper surfaces are an iridescent emerald green and bronze colour. The underside is a bronze colour. There are ragged white marks running widthways across the wing casings which look like fine cracks.
Rose Chafers are usually seen in sunny weather feeding on the pollen and nectar - especially on roses.
The Rose Chafer is sometimes confused with the much rarer Noble chafer, a species normally associated with orchards. One simple way to tell the difference is to look at the scutellum (the small triangular area between the wing cases). On the Noble Chafer it's shaped like an equilateral triangle but on the Rose Chafer it's shaped like an isosceles triangle.
Sightings
2011 - Bristol - Nick Whitmore
2011 - Bristol - Alison Staddon
2011 - Torquay, Devon - C. Moon + Paige Larkin
2011 - Berkshire - Anne Bridger
2011 - Torquay, Devon - Mrs Dorothy Adams
2011 - New Forest, Hampshire - Rogers Family
2011 - Corfe Castle, Dorset - Sue + Adrian Mills
2011 - Witham, Essex - Jan & Rob Huggett
2011 - Ascot, Berkshire - John Bollands
2012 - Bristol - Gill & Dave Hibbs
2012 - Hove, E. Sussex - Jacqui Rush
2012 - Yateley, Hants - Fleur and Nick Smith
2012 - Colchester, Essex - Paul Ost
2012 - Torquay, Devon - Lynda and Evan Geach
2012 - South Stack, Anglesey - Brian Comer
2012 - Thames Ditton, Surrey - Sara Goddard
2012 - Poole, Dorset - Dee Hoy
2012 - Crowthorne, Berkshire - Alistair Allen
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