Bug FAQBlack Caterpillar Hunter
Calosoma sayi · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Carabidae
Also called: Say's Caterpillar Hunter
The Black Caterpillar Hunter is a large, lustrous black beetle about 25-28 mm long, with grooved elytra bearing rows of small ruby-red metallic pits. It lives in fields, disturbed areas, forests and grasslands across the United States and preys on larvae and caterpillars of flies, grubs and other insects.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
A large, shiny black beetle with grooved wing covers that have rows of tiny ruby-red metallic pits.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults measure roughly 25 to 28 mm in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Found in fields, disturbed sites, forests and grasslands.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Both larvae and adults hunt and eat other larvae, pupae and caterpillars, especially those of flies, grubs and lepidoptera.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The species was first described by Dejean in 1826.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Occurs throughout the United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 34 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, Arkansas, Louisiana, Kansas, Alabama, North Carolina.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What does the Black Caterpillar Hunter eat?
It preys on larvae, pupae and caterpillars of flies, grubs and other insects.
Source: Wikipedia
Where can I find this beetle?
It lives in fields, disturbed areas, forests and grasslands across the United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Carabidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calosoma_sayi
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.