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Mila'sExotic Plants & CuriositiesA living collection by Luminary OdditiesLuminary Oddities · Natural history & art
Oedemera nobilis
Coleoptera / Oedemeridae
Oedemera nobilis is a slender metallic-green flower beetle whose males have dramatically enlarged hind femora. High-speed filming shows these legs grasping the female during mating, while wingbeats provide take-off propulsion.
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Both sexes are bright metallic green, with a slender body and long antennae. The wing covers narrow towards their tips, leaving an expanding central gap over the hind wings. Males have greatly enlarged hind femora; females have much slimmer hind legs. [1]
Larvae develop within dead plant stems. [2]
Adults in the Girton collection fed on pollen from white and yellow Asteraceae flowers. [1]
During the recorded mating interactions, males mounted females and encircled the abdomen with both hind legs. Femora and tibiae formed a clamp that maintained contact during the encounter. [1]
The examined male hind femora had 38 times the volume of female hind femora. Despite this enlargement, the filmed take-offs were generated chiefly by wingbeats; the hind legs supplied little or no propulsion. [1]
The accepted species authority is Scopoli, 1763. [2]
Keep the enclosure closed and display it in indirect light, away from heat and damp conditions. Handle the frame by its edges and clean only its exterior according to the maker’s instructions.
Malcolm Burrows; Journal of Experimental Biology 223, jeb212670 (2020) · Accessed 2026-10-13
Natural History Museum, London · Accessed 2026-10-13
GBIF Secretariat · Accessed 2026-10-13
Sources checked 2026-10-13. Illustrations · Luminary Oddities.
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