Cosmosalia chrysocoma
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
Lepturobosca chrysocoma is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It was described as Cosmosalia chrysocoma by William Kirby in 1837. In 1998, comparison of Cosmalia chrysocoma with Lepturobosca virens by the Russian entomologist Alexander Ivanovich Miroshnikov resulted in Cosmalia and Lepturobosca grouped together under the name Lepturobosca. Common names used for this beetle include Yellow velvet beetle, Golden flower longhorn beetle and Golden-haired flower longhorn.
This beetle is known to occur in Canada in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Northwest Territories and Yukon Territory. It has been found in the United States in Montana and Wyoming.
The beetles are 10–20 millimetres (0.39–0.79 in) long and are covered by a dense coat of golden hairs. Adult beetles are frequently seen feeding on flowers in the summer. Their hairy coats pick up pollen, which is transferred to other flowers as they feed, allowing pollination.
Larvae feed on decaying wood of trees, including Picea mariana and Populus. This species is a known host for Coleocentrus quebecensis, a parasitic wasp in the subfamily Acaenitinae. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grand Teton National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Glacier National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Yellowstone National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Jasper National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 5 | Yosemite National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Grand Canyon National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Banff National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 8 | Great Bear Rainforest | 🇨🇦 Canada |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow Velvet Beetle sighting in Yellowstone National Park on a given day, based on 68 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 10th most-seen of the 160 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
July
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Yellow Velvet Beetle in Yellowstone National Park on a given day, against under 5% in September to May, the lowest months. That is one of Yellowstone National Park's driest months, with about 30 mm of rain against 70 mm in February.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Yellow Velvet Beetle sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 8
Of the 8 parks where we can rate Yellow Velvet Beetle sightings, Yellowstone National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Grand Teton National Park (United States, about 20%) and Glacier National Park (United States, about 20%).
Same family: Cerambycidae
The closest relatives of the Yellow Velvet Beetle that you can see in Yellowstone National Park (family Cerambycidae, Longhorn Beetles) are White-Spotted Sawyer (about 20%), Hairy Pine Borer (about 10%) and Gnathacmaeops pratensis (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Yellow Velvet Beetle is recorded against all the insects logged in Yellowstone National Park (68 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
