Bug FAQBee-eating Beetle
Trichodes apiarius · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Cleridae
The bee-eating beetle is a small, hairy beetle about 9 to 16 mm long with a shiny blue or black head and bright red elytra marked with black bands. Adults are seen on Apiaceae flowers from May through June and lay their eggs in the nests of solitary bees or honey-bee hives, where the larvae parasitise the bee brood.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults grow to about 9 to 16 mm (0.35 to 0.63 in) in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
You can find them on flowers, especially Apiaceae, during May and June.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Adults feed on pollen and also hunt small insects, eating larvae and nymphs.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The larvae develop as parasites inside bee nests, feeding on the bee brood. Females lay eggs in solitary bee nests or honey-bee hives.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are active from May through June.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
They occur across most of Europe, the eastern Palearctic region, and North Africa.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It can be told apart from Trichodes alvearius because its black terminal band reaches the tip of the elytra.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 1 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Washington.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
When are bee-eating beetles most likely to be seen?
They are most common on flowers in May and June.
Source: Wikipedia
What do adult bee-eating beetles eat?
Adults feed on pollen and also hunt small insects, including larvae and nymphs.
Source: Wikipedia
How can I tell this beetle apart from similar species?
The black band on its elytra reaches the tip, unlike the similar Trichodes alvearius.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Cleridae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trichodes_apiarius
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.