Neandra brunnea (Fabricius, 1779)

  Information: Neandra brunnea was described by Fabricius in 1798 from "India"? as Tenebrio brunneus.

Neandra brunnea is native to Canada and the United States, being most common in eastern North America. In addition, N. brunnea has been considered established in the area of Dresden, Germany, since the early 1900s, likely having been moved in association with World War I. 

The body of Parandra brunnea is chestnut brown, shiny, and finely to strongly punctate, measuring about 10–24 mm in length. The elytra are elongated and smooth without markings, with a glossy surface. The mandibles are sexually dimorphic: in males they are long, sickle-shaped, and armed with teeth on the inner margin, while in females they are short and broad. The antennae are short, bead-like, with all segments nearly equal in length (except the first two) and do not reach the base of the elytra; they are inserted near the eyes close to the mandible base. The pronotum is broad and transverse, without lateral spines, and the maxillae and mandibles are pincer-like, nearly as large as the head itself. The legs are short, with tibiae ending in small spurs but lacking strong teeth, and the tarsi are distinctly five-segmented.

Body length:  10 - 24 mm
Peak activity: July - September (Germany) | May - September (Canada, USA)

  Remarks: Neandra brunnea develops in a wide range of hardwoods and some conifers. Common hosts in North America include genera such as maple, hickory, chestnut, beech, ash, walnut, sweetgum, tulip tree, apple, poplar, cherry, pear, oak, locust, willow, elm, and linden, while in Europe it has also been recorded from poplar and linden. The life cycle typically lasts two to four years. Adults are active in summer and usually lay eggs in exposed wood near the ground, particularly around bark wounds or in wood that contacts moist soil. In some cases, adults remain within the wood, where they mate and lay eggs. Larvae feed gregariously in both sapwood and heartwood, producing honeycombed galleries filled with granular frass. Before pupation, the larva creates an oval cell at the end of its tunnel and plugs the gallery with wood fibers; the pupal stage lasts about a month. The species has long been regarded as a destructive pest, causing breakage in the lower trunks of shade and fruit trees and historically damaging telegraph and telephone poles, especially those made from chestnut. 

Neandra brunnea is an interesting species of the subfamily Parandrinae that was introduced into Europe in 1916. The adults are nocturnal and are often attracted to light, and during the summer they can be found on host trees, particularly around cavities and on damaged areas near the ground.

  Distribution: Germany, Canada, United States of America, Colombia, South Africa ?? 
Zoogeographic region: Palearctic, Nearctic, Neotropical, Afrotropical ??

  Taxonomic classification:

  Atlas of the Cerambycidae of Europe and Mediterranean Area | Sama 2002

  Material examined (& observation):

Germany  
Saxony prov.
Dresden | Pieschener Allee
(GPS)   
Altitude 120 m a.s.l. 9.8.2013 | 27.8.2025

  Our observation period: August 
  Sampling Methods: At night on old trees