Forum Entomologi Italiani

Anthaxia bicolor Falderman, 1835 - strong color variation
The upper one is normal in color.
Upper - Romania, Balta Mica a Brailei, 23.v.2012, leg. A. Crisan; rest - near Craiova, 7.vi.2016, leg. N. Olenici.

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Ciao
Adrian

Interessanti variazioni cromatiche.
Vengono tutte dallo stesso posto e stesso giorno? E' probabile che siano individui sfarfallati in condizioni climatiche insolite (più caldo del normale o con condizioni di umidità diverse dal solito).

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Maurizio Gigli
http://utenti.romascuola.net/bups
http://bup.xoom.it/

All are males. They are not collected by me. But by a forestry professor and his team, which used pheromones for scolytids. That's why all specimens posted are males. The climatic conditions are normal for the Southern Romania, but close, on the other side of Danube, it exists the nuclear power plant Kozlodui, Bulgaria. I do not make affirmations if this is or not the cause. I want to start a project. I need to know if other species (A. fulgurans, A. podolica, the Agrilus) in that area are affected and how much. I was collecting tens of A. bicolor and only once I have seen a slightly cyanescent specimen. It is not usually a variable species.

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Ciao
Adrian

I am quite doubtfull about a genetic cause for these colours (caused by radiation or other mutagenic factors). I think it's more probably caused by external factors acting on single specimens during the metamorphosis: temperature, humidity, etc.

Do you remember my strange specimen of Anthaxia midas? In the same place and year I found also other cyanescent specimens of other species, and in that place there are no nuclear power plant, chemical industries, no kind of pollution, no strange composition of the soil, mines, etc.

Just a question: did you ask to the collector how they killed and preserved these specimens? Some chemical preservant could change colours of specimens (I have a specimen of Latipalpis plana that was originally green with coppery sides, like usual for this species, but after few months in an unsuitable liquid, it permanently turned to a strange violet purple).

So they were collected in traps. It's possible liquid used in these traps, or a long stay in the sun (UV can change colours quite quickly), or both together, changed colours of these specimens, someone more, someone less.

However, it would be interesting to find other specimens this year or next, in the same place, to see if they are normal or even cyanescent.

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Maurizio Gigli
http://utenti.romascuola.net/bups
http://bup.xoom.it/

I got about 14 specimens and only 3 were normal in colour. They were preserved in alcohol. It shouldn't change the colours that way. I was collected and killed A. bicolor and other species in alcohol, before using ethyl acetate, but never had gotten this phenomenon. I just noticed the presence of the nuclear power station, I cannot emit hypothesis, until I see other species in that location having unusual colours, measuring radiation and finding out the history of the last years radiation. Maybe this is only a coincidence, but 11 specimens from 14? This is not usual. And I repeat, Anthaxia bicolor is rather a constant species as its aspect. How many Anthaxia midas cyanescent specimens you got from that area?

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Ciao
Adrian

Surely ethanol doesn't change colours permanently. I just supposed they were killed/preserved in other strange liquid.


One, but it was the only specimen of A. midas I found in that place.

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Maurizio Gigli
http://utenti.romascuola.net/bups
http://bup.xoom.it/