Taxonomy
Kingdom:	Phylum:	Class:	Order:	Family:	Genus:	Species:
Animalia	Arthropoda	Insecta	Coleoptera	Cantharidae	Cantharis	C. pellucida

Many Soldier Beetles are black. These blackish species are often referred to as Sailor Beetles. So Cantharis pellucida is one of those. It is a little bigger than the Hogwood Bonking Beetle, measuring some 10 to 14 mm. The male is slighly smaller than the female which can be seen in the in copula photographs on this page.

It is a common species in Europe, but never as abundant as the Hogwood Bonking Beetle. C. pellucida is usually found in flowery meadows and fringes of woodlands. To idetify Cantharis pellucida look for the following characteristics: the face is red, the head is black, the neck shield is red with no black markings, the shields are black and the legs are black, except for the first part.