Identify this insect - genus, species

Question

Please help identify this insect - genus, species and anything interesting about it.

I'm

Please add the location where it was found. That helps with ID — RHA, Aug 27 '17 at 15:05
Locations are not available :( - there's very little data associated with each one other than additional photos — ina, Aug 28 '17 at 2:34

bli · Accepted Answer · 2017-07-27 13:41:04Z

2

This one is most probably a longhorn beetle (Cerambycidae). The long elytrae (protective forewings) and the long curved antennae are quite typical.

Yours looks a bit like this one: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosalia_longicorn It is probably a different species, though.

answered Jul 27 '17 at 13:41

bli

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$\begingroup$ do you have further advice or methodology insight on identifying the species $\endgroup$ – ina Jul 31 '17 at 7:21
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$\begingroup$ @ina The way that is taught at school is to use a determination key, but in practice, identification often starts with a familiarity with the group of interest. I would advise to browse an insect identification guide, where species are grouped in families, and get an intuitive feeling of what insects in a given family look like, alongside with general description that the guide gives. Then, to get more precise ID, one has to find a determination key that covers the group of interest. Often, these documents are specific for a region. Some technical notions are often needed. $\endgroup$ – bli Jul 31 '17 at 9:06

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