These introduced weevils (Polydrusus sp.) have been around a while, but their brilliant green stands out. Caught here mating on a low-hanging birch leaf.

These weevils, originally introduced from Europe, are fairly common once summer heats up. They aren’t the most cooperative type. This pair was going about it’s, ahem, business, on a birch leaf and were fairly easy to shoot (i.e. they didn’t stop drop and roll off the leaf into the oblivion of the grass below). Because it was really bright out, I thought I’d go for a natural light background with some flash-fill to illuminate the weevils. I was worried the shutter speed would be a little too slow to prevent blur, but this one turned out pretty sharp, which I can’t say for all the shots I took. The male weevil’s back shows the brightness of the sun with that white glaring sheen on its back.

A couple notes: as usual, this is a handheld shot…. This is a somewhat tentative ID, as their is another Polydrusus sp. (also introduced from Europe) that looks very similar. Going with P. formosus though because BugGuide says it has bigger eyes, and these are pretty, big black ones for our little lovers here.