You probably saw this pic on my recent post for Mother Earth News, but this is such an amazing beetle I have to talk more about him. Look at it:

I’ve found a few of these here and just happened to get a great picture this time. They clock in at about 2″ long. Killer.

The Big Eyed Elater

I went hunting for info on this beast and found this here:

“Unlike its many cousins, the Big Eyed Elater larva is a ferocious meat-eater that dines on many other noxious larvae, including those of wood-boring beetles, flies, and other undesirables.”

Awesome. A big cool-looking bug that also kills bad bugs. Who could ask for anything more?

Except maybe a copy of this book and a toddler to read it to.

Natural pest control often requires no more than creating a healthy ecosystem and letting nature take over. In this case, by providing my food forest with really cool looking beetles.