Bug FAQGolden Buprestid Beetle
Buprestis aurulenta · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Buprestidae
Also called: Golden buprestid
The adult golden buprestid beetle is bright green with orange edging on its wing covers. Its larvae live inside many kinds of conifer trees and can stay for years in dry wood.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Adults are iridescent green with shining orange trim around the wing covers.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
The beetle is found from southern British Columbia through the Rocky Mountains down to Mexico.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Larvae feed on the wood of various coniferous trees.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Larvae develop inside conifer wood and can remain there for many years.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
It occurs in the Pacific Northwest of North America, extending southward through the Rockies to Mexico.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
Buprestis aurulenta is also called the golden jewel beetle.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 11 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What does the golden buprestid beetle look like?
It is an iridescent green beetle with orange trim around its wing covers.
Source: Wikipedia
Where is the golden buprestid beetle found?
It lives from southern British Columbia through the Rocky Mountains down to Mexico.
Source: Wikipedia
What do the larvae of the golden buprestid eat?
The larvae feed on the wood of various coniferous trees.
Source: Wikipedia
How long can golden buprestid larvae stay inside wood?
They can survive for many years, with one recorded case of at least 47 years.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Buprestidae)
Emerald Ash BorerAgrilus planipennisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Sculptured Pine BorerChalcophora virginiensisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Anthaxia nitidulaAnthaxia nitidulaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Western Sculptured Pine BorerChalcophora angulicollis
Red-necked Cane BorerAgrilus ruficollis
Japanese Jewel BeetleChrysochroa fulgidissimaSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buprestis_aurulenta
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.