28/05/2026
Shared from Leicestershire County Council
🐞 Hello, humans! 🐞
Ahem… allow me to introduce myself. I’m Melolontha melolontha - but you can call me Cockchafer (yes, I know, you’re giggling already 🙄). For reasons I still don’t fully understand, my name sends you lot into fits of laughter. Very unbecoming, honestly. If it helps, I also go by the much more dignified alias: May-bug.
I'm one of 100 very special animals, plants and fungi chosen to help humans monitor how well the natural world is faring - find out more at https://orlo.uk/tzMiV
I make my grand appearance around - you guessed it - May and early summer evenings, when I emerge with a satisfying buzz to patrol gardens, parks, and woodland edges. You might spot me bumbling about streetlights or drifting past at dusk like a slightly overenthusiastic helicopter. That’s just my style.
🌿 A bit about me:
• I’m a chunky, chestnut-brown beetle with fan-like antennae (very fashionable, thank you).
• I spend most of my life underground as a larva (we call them “white grubs”), quietly munching on plant roots. Don’t rush me - I take 3–4 years to fully develop!
• When I finally emerge as an adult, I live fast, fly clumsily, snack on leaves, and look for love. It’s a short but glorious season.
🏡 Where to find me:
I’m rather fond of grasslands, gardens, parks, and woodland edges - anywhere with soft soil for my younger self and leafy trees for my grown-up cravings.
👀 Your mission (should you choose to accept it):
Keep your eyes peeled for me during warm evenings! If you spot a dashing beetle blundering through the twilight, it might just be yours truly.
And if it is… please do me a favour and record your sighting here:
👉 https://orlo.uk/B6BUQ
Every record helps humans understand how we’re doing - and I do appreciate a bit of attention (even if you are still snickering at my name).
Right then, I must dash - there’s a tree nearby that simply won’t nibble itself.
Yours buzzingly,
The Cockchafer (May-bug, if you’re feeling polite) 🐞✨
Image credit
