SEX-starved jewel beetles - usually seen hanging like baubles off native Christmas trees - have been caught trying to mate with beer bottles.

Researchers believe the 20mm insects are mistaking sun-glistened bumps on the bottom of discarded bottles with the female of the species.



Jewel beetles are abundant in WA and are important for pollinating native plants - including the WA Christmas tree (Nuytsia floribunda), which is only found in the South-West.



The insects are most active during the hot summer months, after sometimes spending years living under the bark of trees.



But now the females are being left high and dry as males chase bottle over booty.



World Wildlife Fund WA director Paul Gamblin said the unusual fetish illustrates the impacts humans can have on the natural world.



"In some ways, I guess it proves we are not so different to insects, but in all seriousness, every living thing has its part to play and we should do all we can to protect that,'' Mr Gamblin said.



"Like every living species in the Southwest Australia Ecoregion, there is a fine line between the natural order of things and the impact of human settlement - even unexpected consequences, such as beetles being more attracted to beer bottles than their own kind."



"After all, without jewel beetles and other insects to pollinate them, we would end up with bah hum-bugs instead of WA Christmas trees."



There are thousands of species of jewel beetles across the State, including hundreds only living in the Southwest Australian Ecoregion, which runs from Shark bay to Eucla.



In the past and as the name suggests, jewel beetles have been snapped up by collectors who turn their bright, iridescent and colour-tight bodies into jewellery.