Rosemary Beetle

My Editor spotted this little beetle, about the size of a ladybird, on our lavender this morning. Of course I had to go straight out with my macro lens and extension tubes for today's blip. Although the beetle was fairly stationary, the wind kept blowing so that the lavender kept swaying, meaning that it wasn't the easiest photo. Anyway, this is the result.

It was very pretty but we'd no idea what it was. However the RHS website came to the rescue - it's a Rosemary Beetle, an invader from mainland Europe.

Rosemary Beetle is an insect that eats the foliage and flowers of various aromatic plants, such as rosemary, lavender, sage, thyme and some other related plants. It's spread rapidly since first being found breeding in central London in the late 1990s. It is now widespread throughout England and Wales, established in Scotland and present in Northern Ireland and possibly in parts of the Republic of Ireland.

Both the adult beetles and the larvae feed on the foliage and flowers of host plants, and are most active between late summer and the spring. It can be quite destructive so we'd better keep a lookout for more of them - and get rid of this one now that I've photographed and blipped it!

It's best viewed large.