Violet Ground Beetle Notebook

Carabus violaceus: a "fast-running nocturnal predator" as the books always seem to say, this large beetle will be a familiar sight to any child in Eurasia who has buried a jar up to its neck and then examined it the next morning. With it's black satin texture, subtle violet markings and elegant, violin-like body, it is one of the more handsome inhabitants of our gardens.