The unstable longhorn beetle - unstable in what way?

Judolia instabilis, the unstable longhorn beetle, photographed in Clearwater, BC.

The word "unstable" can be taken several ways.  If you have over-indulged with alcohol, you may be unstable in your walking or driving.  If your emotions get the better of you and you become a ranting machine, some may call you unstable.  I suppose the term could be used if a stable in a barn was converted into another purpose - as in, the chicken coop is an unstable, versus being unstable because of shoddy construction.  I don't think any of these terms apply to the fellow in the photo.

The term unstable is used to describe the varied patterns found on this species of beetle.  It turns out that the colouration and mottling vary wildly.  The beetle may be completely black, be a pale cream colour with black spots, be black with pale cream spots, and the spots are different sizes, shapes, and locations. I did an image search for the beetle and took a screenshot of the result; you can see it below.


A screen shot of the Google image search of the unstable longhorn beetle.

They are relatively common.  They can be found throughout most of North America; I photographed this one in Clearwater, BC.  They may take up to three years to mature; regional climate would have a big impact on time spent as a larva.

I wonder if I should call my wife "unstable" next time she changes her clothes.  Somehow, I think that would be a bad idea.  Especially if I tell her I am comparing her to a beetle.  Well, it's kind of a cute beetle, don't you think?

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com

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