Red and Blue Beetle

Dicranolaius bellulus · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Melyridae

No source yet on danger. We have no source yet on whether it bites, stings or damages anything.
Red and Blue Beetle
Photo: Steve Kerr, CC BY

The red and blue beetle (Dicranolaius bellulus) is a beetle known by that common name. It occurs throughout mainland Australia, being found in every state and territory there.

Source: Wikipedia

How to recognize it

Its common name is the red and blue beetle.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it lives

It lives in all mainland Australian states and territories.

Source: Wikipedia

Where it comes from

Its native range covers the whole of mainland Australia.

Source: Wikipedia

Lookalikes

Synonyms and related taxonomic names were clarified in a 2017 study by Liu, Slipinski and Pang.

Source: Wikipedia

More photos

Red and Blue Beetle photo 2
Photo: Steve Kerr, CC BY
Red and Blue Beetle photo 3
Photo: Julian Prow, CC BY
Red and Blue Beetle photo 4
Photo: Andrew Allen, CC BY
Red and Blue Beetle photo 5
Photo: Carmy, CC BY-SA

Same family (Melyridae)

Common Malachite-beetleCommon Malachite-beetleMalachius bipustulatusScarlet Malachite BeetleScarlet Malachite BeetleMalachius aeneusDasytes plumbeusDasytes plumbeusDasytes plumbeusSpotted Maize BeetleSpotted Maize BeetleAstylus atromaculatusDamages trees, gardens or cropsRed Malachite BeetleRed Malachite BeetleAnthocomus rufusTwo-Spotted MelyridTwo-Spotted MelyridCollops bipunctatus

Sources

  • Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dicranolaius_bellulus

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.

How this page works

This is one bug's fact sheet. The colored box at the top says whether it is dangerous. Sections below cover how to recognize it, whether it is a pest, and how to deal with it. The US map shows which states have records; tap a state to see other bugs there.

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