'A huge worry': Christmas beetle decline spurs calls for citizen sightings

Researchers urge members of the public to look out for the beloved insect that was once a mainstay of Australia's summerGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastChristmas beetles were once harbingers of the festive season, appearing en masse in the Australian summer months. In November 1936 a regional Queensland paper reported that after heavy rain, the beetles "swarmed in clouds, and walls were covered with the insects, while the noise of their whirring wings in confined spaces between buildings was like the sound of a far-off aeroplane".Many Australians have summer memories of the beetles: their colourful, shimmery exoskeletons and their clumsy way of flying - sometimes into people's mouths and ears.Sign up for Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup Continue reading...