unidentified something..!

[glut]

I keep coming across small rust brown / red pupae (sp?) whilst digging over my beds. They are about 5-7 mm long and a bit bullet shaped and shiny. I assume something is going to hatch out of it, but as I don't know what I don't know whether to destroy it, leave it for birds or leave it cosy in the soil? Any advice please?

[janeyo]

Someone suggested to me last year when I had similar unidentified things to put some in a jar and hatch them!

[glut]

I can see the logic but I am not sure I could... I wouldn't stand much of a hope of knowing what the poor critter was once it had hatched either unless it came with a little name badge

[Capsid]

Sounds like a pupa. Probably of a moth. Did it look like this?

[Snadger]

Sounds like leatherjackets............if so you will get daddy long legs from them!

[sewer rat]

I'm with Capsid - deffo sounds as if you're describing pupae of some sort.

[Snadger]

Cranefly leatherjacket.

[rogesse]

After cockroaches, cranefly are my next most hated insect, guarenteed to have me running screaming from a room - after my big soft 6ft dollop of a son!

[digthatchick]

No - Snadger is right - it must be a leatherjacket (Cranefly Larvae) I love it in September when about two million? of them leave my lawn !!

[glut]

I would say it looks most like Capsids photo about 5mm long and without the really defined ridges of Snadgers photo...not sure what I thought moth's did at this stage of their lives but I never imagined they would hang out in soil?! Thanks, I guess I can leave them alone or for the birds after all.

[Snadger]

I would say it looks most like Capsids photo about 5mm long and without the really defined ridges of Snadgers photo...not sure what I thought moth's did at this stage of their lives but I never imagined they would hang out in soil?! Thanks, I guess I can leave them alone or for the birds after all.

My mistake........I didn't notice the 5 to 7mm long bit! Leather jackets are much larger and can be up to 15 mm long!

[Two_Sheds]

It's almost certainly a Privet Hawk Moth pupa ( a good guy)
Google Image Result for http://www.butterfly-conservation.org/images/sub/Lrn-PrivetHawk-mothpupaPM.jpg

A pic of the moth here: http://ukmoths.org.uk/show.php?id=985

[nelliegemini]

Not only good but gorgeous!

We were at a summer barbecue once when there was a mass emerging of these. We all sat around munching burgers etc with live pink and green jewellery sat on us - lovely eyes on them up close.

[Capsid]

It's almost certainly a Privet Hawk Moth pupa ( a good guy)

Google Image Result for http://www.butterfly-conservation.org/images/sub/Lrn-PrivetHawk-mothpupaPM.jpg
Trouble is the hawk moth pupa is quite big, bigger than the 5mm quoted. I think it's quite hard to identify a moth from its pupa.

[Two_Sheds]

Trouble is the hawk moth pupa is quite big, bigger than the 5mm quoted.

You're right. I was going on the photo that you posted, and assumed the 5mm to be a typo (typed mm instead of cm)