Bug FAQStenopterus rufus
Stenopterus rufus · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Cerambycidae
Stenopterus rufus is a small beetle about 7 to 16 mm long, with a black head and pronotum, a black abdomen crossed by yellow stripes, and red elytra that have black at the base and tip. It lives in European meadows, hedge rows, beech and wet forests, and adults are seen from May through August, completing a two-year life cycle.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The head and pronotum are black, the abdomen is black with horizontal yellow stripes, and the wing covers are red with black at the base and tip.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults measure between 7 and 16 mm in length.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Larvae bore into dead branches of deciduous trees, feeding on the wood. Adults frequently visit flowers, especially Apiaceae, Heracleum sphondylium and Ranunculus repens, to eat pollen and nectar.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Adults appear from May to August and the species completes its development over two years.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
You can see the adults during the months of May, June, July and August.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
The species is widespread across most of Europe, the Caucasus, Transcaucasia, Iran and the Near East.
Source: Wikipedia
More photos
Questions people ask
When are Stenopterus rufus beetles active?
Adults are active from May through August.
Source: Wikipedia
What do the larvae feed on?
The larvae bore into dead branches of deciduous trees and feed on the wood.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Cerambycidae)
House LonghornHylotrupes bajulusCan damage your home
Asian Longhorned BeetleAnoplophora glabripennisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Red Milkweed BeetleTetraopes tetrophthalmus
White-spotted SawyerMonochamus scutellatusCan damage your home
Red Pine Longhorn BeetleStictoleptura rubra
Spotted Longhorn BeetleRutpela maculataSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stenopterus_rufus
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Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.