Longhorn Beetle - Russia (1 Viewer)

I'm finding the lack of info for the region to be very frustrating.

The Longhorns (assuming that this is a Longhorn?) are a fairly well known and easily visible group yet there seem to be large gaps in identification materials?

Any help appreciated


A

Asemum species maybe. Just a suggestion.

Thanks Salticus,
I don't know much at all about Longhorns, even how many species there are in MW Europe but I'd have thought that they were more readily identifiable?

Do you think that this one is too smooth to be striatum?


A

Well, it does look too smooth but I wondered if that was due to the quality of the photo. But it was closest I could see for Russia on cerambycidae.org
http://cerambycidae.org/taxa/Spondylinae-Audinet-Serville-1832?country=47

Many thanks,

A

I now think this may be a Arhopalus (Chriocephalus) rusticus / tristis?



A

andyadcock said:

I'm finding the lack of info for the region to be very frustrating.

The Longhorns (assuming that this is a Longhorn?) are a fairly well known and easily visible group yet there seem to be large gaps in identification materials?

Any help appreciated


A

Click to expand...

The area is actually one of the best covered regions away from NW Europe

Keys to the insects of the European USSR cover many groups.

What you cant do is get reliable names on the cheap without keying specimens as so many people seem to think they ought to be able to do. Even for British insects the photo-post online technique is highly problematical, leads to a plethora of miss-identified images online, and depends on those of us who have built experience by purchasing the keys and working through them with specimens to offer their experience for free. I worry that by identifying on-line images, the posters will feel no need to become competent entomologists themselves, so I am becoming very selective. I have completely departed from another forum because so many posters either took no notice of my caveats, happily ticking things as confirmed when I was very uncertain, and/or posting the same species many times showing that they and learned nothing, and were uninterested in doing so, wanting only a label for their photo and a tick.

Fully understood,
I do hope that I don't qualify for the type described? The same can be said of birds as well IMHO, people come home with a heap of unidentified birds and don't even try to work them out themselves before posting and miss out on a very satisfying, leraning opportunity.

Especially on my patch in Russia which I work every day, I often say to my wife that were are providing what will probably be the only ever data on this locality.

Most people don't consider themselves to be scientists and certainly won't stump up a hundred quid or more for a book containing line drawings of genitalia etc. I just did a search for the book you mention which would involve the outlay of well over £1K for the 4 vols I found.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_s...rds=Keys+to+the+insects+of+the+European+USSR+

I'll probably stop posting now I think and do what I can from what resources I have



Regards, Andy

andyadcock said:

Fully understood,
The same can be said of birds as well IMHO, people come home with a heap of unidentified birds and don't even try to work them out themselves before posting and miss out on a very satisfying, leraning opportunity.

Regards, Andy

Click to expand...

Exactly so.

Rather than stop posting why not post named examples for confirmation. I don't know about others but if I see someone has made a real effort, taken shots from critical angles, retained specimen, then I for one am far more likely to respond, indeed be keen to encourage.

there are more affordable resources, and these days many can be found for free on-line so it is much cheaper and easier than it was in the pre-internet days.

Ficedula said:

Exactly so.

Rather than stop posting why not post named examples for confirmation. I don't know about others but if I see someone has made a real effort, taken shots from critical angles, retained specimen, then I for one am far more likely to respond, indeed be keen to encourage.

Click to expand...

I did exactly that with a batch of Longhorns and got not a single reply.

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=350579



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