Family: Cerambycidae
Subfamily: Cerambycinae
Length: 4-12 mm
Molorchus bimaculatus is a small longhorn with short elytra that cover less than half of the abdomen. The elytra are light-colored with the tips dark. There may also be dark areas along the elytral bases. The femora are club-shaped. The pronotum is large and elongated.
A number of subspecies of Molorchus bimaculatus have been described. The expert on northeastern longhorns suggests authors may have gone overboard in naming subspecies, and that many are of questionable validity.
The larvae of Molorchus bimaculatus feed on dead maple, redbud, hackberry, dogwood, and other hardwood species, sometimes feeding under the bark of dead branches, and sometimes mining in the sapwood. In West Virginia these are among the first longhorns to be found in the Spring, and they may be located on a number of early blooming trees and shrubs including apple (first photo) and dogwood (second photo).
