The Adventure Of The Eyed Beetle

During our visit to Virginia last month, we spent part of one day exploring the Rappahannock River (Algonquian for "river of quick, rising water") where it passes through Fredricksburg.  The river has lush vegetation on both shores, and frequent rapids.  In addition, vegetation is scattered across the width the river, which gives it the appearance of flowing through a flooded field.  Here's what it looks like just above Fredricksburg.

The Rappahannock River flowing toward Fredricksburg, Virginia.

We were hoping to see an Ebony Jewelwing here, a beautiful damselfly not found in Washington State.  The jewelwing didn't appear, but at one point Betsy felt a "thud" on the top of her hat.  She brushed off whatever it was that had landed there and this is what fell to the ground.

The Eyed Click Beetle that landed on Betsy's hat.

This beetle looks like some kind of alien, with giant eyes.

This is an Eyed Click Beetle.  The first part of the name is obvious, but why is it a "click" beetle?  The reason is that when this beetle falls onto its back it has a special mechanism for righting itself.  It stiffens its body and flexes upward, like an inverted "V".  It then snaps back to its original shape, producing an audible "click" and propelling itself several inches into the air.  It usually lands back on its feet and scurries off.  It can also do the "click" maneuver to escape from a bird or other predator.  We have click beetles in Washington, but ours are barely bigger than a grain of rice and a simple brown color – nothing as dramatic and eye catching as the Eyed Click Beetle.