Flower Chafer Beetle
Euphoria leucographa
Florida Canyon, Sta. Rita Mts., Arizona, USA. 30 July 2013. Three formica ants and are attempting to dislodge the beetle from an oozing wound on Baccharis sarathroides.
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There are many species of flower chafer scarabs that can be found in the sycamore canyons of Arizona. This one is a bronzy-brown and the elytra have a complicated patterns cream-colored marks. It is about 12 mm long.
The wound on this Desert Broom stem is, I believe, an infection caused by a rust fungus (Uredinales?). The oozing sap is apparently sweet, because it attracts many beetles, wasps, moths and ants. (Do these insects act as vectors for fungal conidia? Or, perhaps, the insects create the wounds that allow fungal entry?). In the photo at left a group of ants are attemting to commandeer the feeding site.