Rhagonycha fulva

Common Red Soldier Beetle Rhagonycha fulva

The most abundant soldier beetle I think, though flying later in the year than many of the other species. It must be one of the easiest beetles to find, with scores of them feeding on Hogweed flowers in the summer. I often get them coming to light but see far more during the daytime.

This species is an example of why keys are not always the best identification tools - for some species a field-guide type approach would work better. To identify this species using a key you will likely need to examine the shape of the apical segment of its palp and check whether it's claws are bifurcate or not before you even get to genus, let alone species. For a long time, using keys I was never quite sure if there might be other similar species, so selected a sample to key out and confirm. Mark Gurney's excellent Guide to British Soldier Beetles allows an at-a-glance review of all the species and it quickly becomes clear that the only other red soldier beetle with a neat black tip to the elytra is Rhagonycha lutea, and that has a black head.

Rhagonycha fulva, North Elmham Cathedral Meadows (Norfolk, UK), 9th July 2021