Insect ID please = Maybug/cockchafer

[veggiechicken]

Found this chap on the Jostaberries this morning. He doesn't seem to be eating the leaves or the fruit so I left him there. He's about an inch long.
May bug, maybe?

[Two_Sheds]

It's a chafer, commonly known as May or June bug, depending on when you spot it.

The grubs do more damage (to your lawn) than the adults

[veggiechicken]

Thanks 2S. I thought it was and I've just goggled this How to identify a cockchafer May bug | Natural History Museum
He's only got 5-6 weeks to live. Should I tell him?

And I don't have a lawn here so no worries

[Two_Sheds]

He'd only have 5 or 6 mins to live if I found him. I hate them, horrible things that fly into your hair

[veggiechicken]

They make me laugh, the way they crash around, but I'll close the doors tonight just in case!

[Two_Sheds]

I went to an open air concert with RustyLady one year, and all of a sudden 1000s of chafer beetles took to the air and bombed everyone: they were in our hair, down our clothes, it was a plague. Terrifying, I hate them like I hate flying ants (fants)

[Jeanied]

They are good food for the bats (which don't fly into your hair, incidentally).

[veggiechicken]

OK, 2S, I wouldn't like that either - in fact it sounds horrific. Let's just hope there's only one in the garden.

[Two_Sheds]

They are good food for the bats

Yeah I guess so: crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside, like a Dime Bar

I love bats, I must remember to go and video the ones under the bridge

[rustylady]

He'd only have 5 or 6 mins to live if I found him. I hate them, horrible things that fly into your hair

Do you remember when I came home to find you'd trapped one under a flowerpot, with a book on top, and the pot was still moving?

[rustylady]

I went to an open air concert with RustyLady one year, and all of a sudden 1000s of chafer beetles took to the air and bombed everyone: they were in our hair, down our clothes, it was a plague. Terrifying, I hate them like I hate flying ants (fants)

I was the lucky one, I had a jacket with a hood

[VirginVegGrower]

One flew into son's bedroom one summer. Never heard such screams before, he was about eight and petrified. He was in my bed that night

[Two_Sheds]

Do you remember when I came home to find you'd trapped one under a flowerpot, with a book on top, and the pot was still moving?

I'll never forget it. I'd never seen a beast like it. I'd already battered it with the book before trapping it, and it was STILL walking round the living room carpet

[jono83]

My 23 year old sister abandoned her flat because of one tonight, and big bro had to come home from a friends to sort it out :S ( trapped in a jar and released after) but it was funny in a way, the thing I find intruging about them is they only live for 5-6 weeks but if you kill one it continues to twitch and move for days afterwards almost a zombie bug lol ( not that I have personally killed one, goes against the grain with me) but here is some info on the little blighters

Adult chafers eat the leaves and flowers of many deciduous trees, shrubs and other plants, their fat, white grubs (reaching 40-45 mm) live in the soil and feed on plant roots. The grubs can be found immediately below the surface, usually lying in a characteristic comma-like position. Grubs attack vegetables and other garden plants. Injury to the roots and rootstock causes small saplings and tender tap-rooted plants like lettuce, to wilt suddenly or to show stunted growth and a tendency to shed leaves prematurely. Chafer grubs feed below ground for 3-4 years before changing into adult beetles.

Chafer grubs can be controlled by treating infested areas with an insecticide liquid or powder (making sure the manufacturer instructions are followed carefully). Thorough cultivation of flower borders and vegetable plots will generally ensure that plant losses are minimal.

[lettucegrow!]

He'd only have 5 or 6 mins to live if I found him. I hate them, horrible things that fly into your hair

Urrgh! That made me shudder1