Michael Farmer was walking around his property in Costa Rica when he paused to look at something peculiar on the leaves of a guava tree: a small piece of metal that seemed to be moving.
He picked it up to see what it was, and realized he was holding a species of rare scarab beetle known as “Chrysina limbata”
All species of the Chrysina Beetles have astonishing metallic colors.
It happens as their exoskeleton has a layered material which separates the light like a prism & then re-combine & reflect light to amplify their brightness & shimmer.
The amazing golden color of these scarab beetles (Chrysina resplendens) is not a result of pigmentation or actual metal, but ≈70 microscropic chitin layers of decreasing thickness that reflect light to produce a metallic effect.
Also, the Madagascar blue jewel beetle, scientifically named ‘Polybothris sumptuosa’, is considered one of the most visually stunning insects globally.
It exhibits several color variations, with the sumptuosa gemma variant being particularly noted for its vibrant, metallic blue sheen.
