Summertime

The Christmas beetle is a type of scarab beetle, known for flying around and making itself at home in eastern Australia during the Christmas season. And Christmas season is summertime in Australia, so these beetles make a beautiful sight amongst our gardens (especially in urban and suburban areas).

Unfortunately, it is anecdotally known that the Christmas beetle isn't as common around here as it used to be. It is suspected that the reason for this is loss of habitat, as the adults depend on eucalyptus leaves and the larvae depend on native grasses.

Here, a Christmas beetle is perched on the tip of a eucalyptus leaf, like the prettiest ornament atop a Christmas tree.

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