Bug FAQFlat-headed Hardwood Borer
Dicerca divaricata · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Buprestidae
Also called: Flatheaded Hardwood Borer
Source: Wikipedia
The flat-headed hardwood borer is a black beetle about 15 to 22 mm long. It feeds on several maple species, American elm and redbud trees in North America. Adults are on the wing in May and June.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
It is a black coloured beetle.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
It measures 15 to 22 mm (0.59 to 0.87 in) in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is found in North America.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
It feeds on maples such as sugar maple and red maple, American elm, and redbud species.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Adults fly in May and June.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
The species is active in May and June.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its native range is North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 28 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Vermont, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, West Virginia.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
When are flat-headed hardwood borers active?
Adults are on the wing in May and June.
Source: Wikipedia
What trees do they damage?
They feed on sugar maple, red maple, American elm and redbud trees.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Buprestidae)
Emerald Ash BorerAgrilus planipennisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Sculptured Pine BorerChalcophora virginiensisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Golden Buprestid BeetleBuprestis aurulenta
Anthaxia nitidulaAnthaxia nitidulaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Western Sculptured Pine BorerChalcophora angulicollis
Anthaxia quadripunctataAnthaxia quadripunctataSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dicerca_divaricata
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.