What is a Colorado Potato Beetle doing on my driveway?

Not that it would be unheard of for a Colorado Potato Beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata, to arrive on my driveway in Long Island, NY. Colorado Potato Beetles, despite their misleading common name, are actually pretty heavily distributed throughout the world. This map from Geller-Grimm (2003) displays the distribution of the Colorado Potato Beetle.

So, it does not seem crazy that the Colorado Potato Beetle was on my driveway. Okay. Let's research a bit. This is what an adult Colorado Potato Beetle looks like,

Image source: http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/veg/leaf/potato_beetles06.htm

And here's a picture I took of the specimen from my driveway:

Though the body shape is the same, this beetle has some red stripes distributed on the dorsal side of the abdomen, it lacks the characteristic black markings on the antenna and leg appendages, and the black spots on the head and thorax are not as thick and blotchy. I was not convinced that this was the species I thought it was, so I did some research.

Turns out that what I found is a cousin of the Colorado Potato Beetle. It is very related, in the same genus Leptinotarsa but its species name is Leptinotarsa juncta. Order Coleoptera, family Chrysomelidae. It is commonly known as the False Potato Beetle. This name is misleading, however. The False Potato Beetle sometimes feed on potatoes, but their true specialty is horse nettle. Their distribution is also less cosmopolitan, as they are primarily found in the southeastern and eastern United States. False Potato Beetles sometimes copulate with Colorado Potato Beetles, but they cannot actually cross-breed together. Now, here's a pretty picture of this guy.

Image source: http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/imgs/512x768/1111_1111/2222/2121.jpeg

Sources: 

"Colorado Potato Beetle." University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Studies. http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/veg/leaf/potato_beetles.htm. Accessed 30 September 2012.