Plague Soldier Beetle

I observed many Plague Soldier Beetles in the water at Seaford Front Beach on 21/2/24.

I've never come across this before and wondering how they initially got there. I saved 5 of them but there were quite a few spread around widely in the water.

It seems strange to me they would fly in to the water (about 80m out) but how else would they get there?
There was no debris floating on or near the surface but for a picked flower and leaf (floating separately a distance from each other) unsure of the species - not native. Potentially they could have been clinging to the stem and someone tossed it in to the water? There was not many people there that day albeit being 32 degrees.

Curious to find out more.

Posted on 22 de fevereiro de 2024, 09:09 PM by klem419