Gold Christmas beetle wins 2026 ABC Australian Insect of the Year vote

Résumé détaillé

More than 44,000 Australians voted in this year's ABC Australia Insect of the Year campaign, but which of our six finalists took home the gold?

The gold Christmas beetle is the newly crowned 2026 ABC Australian Insect of the Year.

The golden-jacketed summer visitor from northern Queensland won over more than 39.3 per cent of online voters in the annual campaign run across the ABC News website.

A grand total of 44,472 people voted for the third ABC Australian Insect of the Year, with 17,454 nominating the gold Christmas beetle (Anoplognathus aureus) among a field of six finalists.

The poll proved a beetle quinella, with the cute-as-a-button tortoise-shelled ladybird (Harmonia testudinaria) snaring just under a quarter of the vote (11,069 votes, 24.9 per cent).

The mysterious Otway glow-worm (Arachnocampa otwayensis) was selected by 10.9 per cent of respondents (4,830 votes) to sneak onto the podium, just ahead of this year's plucky underdog, the stalk-eyed signal fly (Achias australis) with 10.1 per cent (4,508 votes).

Two spectacular butterflies: the Mallee bronze azure butterfly (Ogyris subterrestris) and orchard swallowtail butterfly (Papilio aegeus) secured 8 per cent (3,574) and 6.8 per cent (3,037) of the vote respectively.

This year's Australian Insect of the Year campaign received nominations from the CSIRO (Dr Keith Bayless), Australian Entomological Society (Dr Mark Schutze), Zoos Victoria (Jessie Sinclair), Gardening Australia magazine (AB Bishop) and nature author-photographer Peter Rowland.

However, it was Invertebrates Australia founder and director Kate Umbers who nominated the gold Christmas beetle as a finalist.

Dr Umbers says it is a timely victory as scientists try to unravel why there are fewer Christmas beetles seen than a few decades ago.

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