Until the last few years, I had never seen these things. Then they occasionally showed up, usually dead in standing water. A couple of summers ago, when I was having well issues, I had to run some water into stock tanks.
I wasn't living here then, and when I returned, I found a couple of strange and huge beetles floating on the surface.
This summer, I drew a bucket of water and the next morning found the same: another dead click beetle. But I had never seen a living specimen, until a couple of weeks ago, when one flew onto the grille of my truck when I was standing nearby. Since then I've seen more--maybe I'm just more attuned to them now.
I haven't seen them click--the above is still the only live one I have seen up close; the others have been flying--but they otherwise seem to be pretty benign insects (and may even be beneficial, according to Michael Raupp of the University of Maryland Cooperative Extension Service). They prey on larvae of other species, including those that burrow into decaying wood. With my firewood stacks, I definitely see signs of infestation, sometimes severe.
Help dealing with creatures like this would be welcome. Wood eating organisms may have their place, but are not a good fit for my oak firewood.
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