Bronze beetle
Its elytra shine like polished metal in sunlight, and the species has spread from the Mediterranean into newly colonized ground as far away as California.
| Where | Open grassland, meadows and coastal edges |
|---|---|
| Size | 8 to 11 mm body length |
| When | April to November |
Adults are broad bodied leaf beetles with shining bronze elytra marked by rows of fine punctures, and orange brown legs that contrast with the metallic body.
It feeds on a range of plants in the daisy and mint families, favouring open, sunny ground such as meadows, woodland edges and coastal grassland.
Traits
Habitat
Grassland
Colour
Metallic, Brown
Active
Day
To people
Not known to bite or sting; often seen feeding openly on flowering plants.
Activity through the year
Often confused with
Smaller at 5 to 8 mm, with bold metallic green and purple stripes running lengthwise rather than the plain bronze sheen of the Bronze beetle.
Questions
Is the Bronze beetle dangerous to people?
Not known to bite or sting; often seen feeding openly on flowering plants.
When can you see the Bronze beetle?
The Bronze beetle can be seen from April to November, by day.
Plate retouched from a photo by Udo Schmidt from Deutschland, CC BY‑SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons Licence
The plate on this page is shared under the same licence as its source, CC BY-SA.
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Beetles›Leaf beetles›Chrysolina
Last updated 2026-09-26. Every entry is checked against published sources.