Beetles

All images on this website have been taken in Leicestershire and Rutland by NatureSpot members. We welcome new contributions - just register and use the Submit Records form to post your photos. Click on any image below to visit the species page. The RED / AMBER / GREEN dots indicate how easy it is to identify the species - see our Identification Difficulty page for more information. A coloured rating followed by an exclamation mark denotes that different ID difficulties apply to either males and females or to the larvae - see the species page for more detail.

Beetles represent the largest insect group with around 4,000 species in Britain and 300,000 worldwide. They are easy to recognise as their front wings are hard, covering the second pair of wings and the abdomen. All beetles have biting mouthparts. The beetle species in this gallery are grouped into families which are presented in taxonomic order according to the Checklist of Beetles of the British Isles (Duff 2012).

An annotated Checklist to the Beetles of VC55. G.L. Finch, February 2026

Identification help

Facebook Group: Leicestershire and Rutland Coleoptera Recording Scheme

Facebook Group: Beetles of Britain and Ireland

Leicestershire and Rutland resources (click to expand)

Scarce VC55 Beetles part 1 - Graham Finch

Scarce VC55 Beetles part 2 - Graham Finch

VC55 Cerambycidae Atlas - Graham Finch

VC55 Coccinellidae Atlas - Graham Finch (updated to the end of 2020)

Leicestershire Red Data Book Beetles (Derek Lott 1985)

Leicestershire Coleoptera Recording Scheme newsletter #1 (Feb 1984)

Leicestershire Coleoptera Recording Scheme newsletter #2 (Mar 1985)

Leicestershire Coleoptera Recording Scheme newsletter #3 (Apr1986)

Leicestershire Coleoptera Recording Scheme newsletter #4 (Dec 2018)

Leicestershire Coleoptera Recording Scheme newsletter #5 (Apr 2020)

Leicestershire Coleoptera Recording Scheme newsletter #6 (Jan 2021)

Beetle Keys (click to expand)

Video: An Introduction to UK Ground Beetles, including a presentation, quiz and question and answer session - Chris Foster, Ground Beetle Recording Scheme

Mike's insect keys - an excellent resource listing free online keys to many beetle families.

Weevil keys - photographic guide to UK weevils

Larger water beetles - a Dutch key but with very useful photos

Soldier beetles - illustrated guide to UK species

The Royal Entomological Society has produced keys to many insect groups including numerous families of beetles. The more modern publications tend to have a mixture of photographs and line drawings, older versions line drawings alone. Electronic versions of out-of-print volumes can be downloaded for free from the link on the page.

Other useful websites and publication (click to expand)

Online

Coleopterists Society of Britain and Ireland

UK Beetle Recording - a comprehensive site about UK beetles. Has over 700 beetle photos though layout is not easy to use for finding a look-alike.

The Ground Beetles of Ireland - great photos of live beetles. Has a photographic key.

John Walters illustrated ID guides - a series of excellent downloadable leaflets - most free.

Beetles of Germany - wonderful site with top class images. Many of the species are the same as those found in the UK.

European Carabidae - excellent site with comprehensive gallery of high quality images. Has a great function to allow comparison of selected species.

Ladybird larvae - photo id pdf from the Ladybird Survey.

Beetle News - free, downloadable newsletter, most issues include excellent guides to a beetle group.

Dung beetle pictorial guide

Printed

Note: To source some of the more obscure beetle books you need to look beyond Amazon. Pemberley Books and NHBS are worth checking out.

Beetles of Britain and Ireland by Andrew G. Duff. Four volumes - the first comprehensive account since Joy (1932).

Longhorn Beetles - an excellent 2 part identification guide published in British Wildlife Part 1:18:406-14, Aug 2007, Part 2: 19:35-43, Oct 07.

The Leicestershire Coleopterists, Derek Lott. A fascinating account of 200 years of beetle hunting in the County.

Beetles of the Czech and Slovak Republics, Karel Hurka - very good general overview with quality colour plates. Many beetles overlap with British the fauna

If you know of other websites or books that you would recommend, do let us know: info@naturespot.org

Ptinidae - Wood borer beetles

Ptinus fur
White-marked Spider Beetle
female - specimen examined
Ptinus fur
White-marked Spider Beetle
male
Ptinus sexpunctatus

attracted to light trap
Stegobium paniceum
Biscuit Beetle

Lymexylidae - Timberworm beetles

Cleridae - Chequered beetles

Melyridae - Soft-winged flower beetles

Byturidae - Fruitworm beetles

Biphyllidae - False skin beetles

Biphyllus lunatus

Erotylidae - Pleasing Fungus Beetles

A key to Erotylidae species is available on the UK Beetles website.

Monotomidae - Root-eating beetles

Rhizophagus dispar

Cryptophagidae - Silken fungus beetles

Silvanidae - Silvanid flat bark beetles

Phalacridae - Shining flower beetles

Olibrus aeneus

male - specimen examined
Olibrus corticalis
Stilbus testaceus

specimen examined

Kateretidae - Short-winged flower beetles

Brachypterus glaber

dark legs and antennae
Brachypterus urticae

on Common Nettle - specimen examined
Kateretes pusillus

Nitidulidae - Sap beetles

Epuraea aestiva

specimen examined
Epuraea melanocephala
Epuraea melina

specimen examined
Epuraea silacea

specimen examined
Glischrochilus hortensis
Glischrochilus quadriguttatus

found on sap run
Meligethes
Meligethes aeneus
Pollen Beetle
Meligethes atratus
Soronia grisea

Cerylonidae - Minute bark beetles

Cerylon histeroides

photo by Graham Finch

Endomychidae - Handsome fungus beetles

Endomychus coccineus
False Ladybird

Coccinellidae - Ladybirds

Atlas of VC55 Ladybirds
NatureSpot guide to the 12 Most Common Ladybirds in Leicestershire and Rutland.

The following books are recommended:

Field Guide to the Ladybirds of Great Britain and Ireland by Helen Roy and Peter Brown, illustrated by Richard Lewington (Bloomsbury, 2018)
Micro ladybirds of Britain and Ireland. Justamond & Williams (FSC 2025) ISBN 9781917154147