Coleoptera1349 species

Family Leaf Beetles (Chrysomelidae)

Chrysomelidae is a family in the order Coleoptera. Browse 1,349 named species recorded in this family, or open an individual profile for its available identification and natural-history information.

Species in Chrysomelidae (1,349)

Garden Flea Beetle

Phyllotreta robusta

Identification: adult habitus Elytral yellow band expanded in the apical half to reach sutural, and lateral margins. This pattern shared with P. liebecki only; in males, the shape and length of antennal segment 5 is different: distinctly shorter than

Striped Flea Beetle

Phyllotreta striolata

Identification: Elongate oval. Shining black, elytra marked with yellow. Antennae black, basal 3 segments yellow-brown, 5th segment usually 1/3 longer than 4th, its width 1/4 its length. Head, pronotum and elytra closely punctate, elytral punctures s

Small Striped Flea Beetle

Phyllotreta undulata

A tiny beetle, which measures little more than about 1.5 mm. Its black elytra are marked with broad straw yellow longitudinal stripes. It is similar to Phyllotreta nemorum and detailed examination is necessary to be certain of the species. Their pref

Phyllotreta vittula

Approximately 2mm. The elytra are black with longitudinal straw coloured or orangey-yellow stripes. Detailed examination of the specimen is needed to identify the species (a photograph alone is not normally sufficient because key features are too sma

Wild Olive Tortoise Beetle

Physonota alutacea

Identification: undisturbed adults are silvery: disturbed adults: Larvae, like others of this genus, are bizarre:

Physonota disjuncta

Identification: Habitus photos not recorded for the US in Riley

Sunflower Tortoise Beetle

Physonota helianthi

Identification: Oval. Shining pale yellow. Pronotum with margin explanate, covering head from above; having 3 black spots, median more elongate. Elytra with explanate margins; finely to moderately coarsely, mostly irregularly punctate.

Horsemint Tortoise Beetle

Physonota unipunctata

Identification: Pale greenish yellow, three black dots on the thorax, white spots on elytra (colors fade in preserved specimens)

Plagiodera thymaloides

Identification: Det. E. G. Riley, 2009 Texas considers this a SGCN ( 5 )

Plagiodera versicolora

2.5-4.5mm. A very rounded leaf-beetle. Upperside is metallic green or blue, though occasionally purple. The underside, femora and tibiae are black, as are the tips of the antennae. The elytral punctures are generally in a confused pattern but with so

Plagiosterna aenea

6.5 to 8 mm. Usually metallic or iridescent green, occasionally blue or brassy. Very similar to some other Chrysomelidae species, particularly Chrysolina herbacea . Good quality close up photographs required. Detailed examination of the specimen may

Plateumaris aurifera

Identification: syntype The bright goldish green color, pale appendages, and finely but distinctly pubescent pronotum are distinctive in the genus

Plateumaris flavipes

Identification: Generally easily recognized by the combination of completely testaceous appendages, moderate to absent metafemoral tooth of most specimens, pronotum with dense punctation, often rugulose to broadly indistinctly alutaceous to shagreene

Plateumaris fulvipes

Identification: Recognized by the broad metafemoral tooth, emarginate male pygidium, notched female pygidium (larger than flavipes), most specimens with more or less quadrate pronotum and densely punctate and punctulate disc, elytra densely punctulat

Germar's reed beetle

Plateumaris germari

Plateumaris germari is a species of aquatic leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in western North America.

Plateumaris metallica

Identification: Pronotum either side of midline swollen and more or less shiny, less punctate, and with anterolateral calli shiny but more or less obsolete and poorly defined. Legs, except apex of femora, reddish, antennomeres of most specimens rufou

Plateumaris neomexicana

Identification: metafemoral spine reduced ‒Tim Loh 2013

Plateumaris nitida

Identification: metafemoral tooth is relatively small and acute and not set off the posteroventral edge of the femur. - comment: Tim Loh 2011 Correction : this species is most reliably ID'd by the shiny convex area of the pronotum that is either side

Plateumaris pusilla

Identification: metafemur with prominent spine and apical dark metallic band ‒Tim Loh 2013

Plateumaris rustica

This plain looking brown 'Reed Beetle' is around 9mm. As with other species in the genus it has swollen femora with the hind one displaying a projecting spine. Found in damp habitats and at water margins Associated with plants of the Sedge family (Ca

Plateumaris sericea

Length 9 to 12 mm. Plateumaris sericea shows amazing colour variation, ranging from blackish-blue to red with heavily pitted elytra. Plateumaris discolor is similar, but mainly found around acid waters. Around ponds where the larval foodplants are pr

Shoemaker's reed beetle

Plateumaris shoemakeri

Identification: Typically, specimens of P. shoemakeri are recognized by presence of deep, regular median line and basal and callosal sulci of pronotum, largely reddish appendages, robustly clavate metafemur with large acute subapical tooth, and shiny

Brooklime Leaf Beetle

Prasocuris junci

Size: 4 to 5 mm. Prasocuris junci is a very dark metallic blue or occasionally dark green beetle. Water margins where Brooklime ( Veronica beccabunga ) and Water-speedwells are present. Prasocuris junci grazes on leaves of Brooklime and Water-speedwe

Banded Leaf Beetle

Prasocuris vittata

Prasocuris vittata is a species of leaf beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in North America.

Pseudodibolia opima

Identification: Destinctive serate outer margin on hind tibia: Type Locality: North Carolona

Waterfern Flea Beetle

Pseudolampsis guttata

Identification: Fuscous, densely clothed with fine short pubescence, legs and elytra paler, the latter are twice as wide as the prothorax, impressed behind the base; strife well impressed finely punctured, each with three dark spots, the first and th

Pseudoluperus longulus

Pseudoluperus is a genus of leaf beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. It is monotypic, being represented by the single species, Pseudoluperus longulus, which is found in North America.

Pseudorthygia nigritarsis

Identification: of the original six spmns collected, "one of which is of a blood-red colour." Type Locality: Amula, Guerrero, 6000 ft, Mexico

Potato Flea Beetle

Psylliodes affinis

Length 2 to 3 mm with straw yellow elytra marked with brown. It feeds on the leaves of various plants of the family Solanaceae cultivated or wild. Common and widespread in England and Wales.

Psylliodes chalcomera 0

Psylliodes chalcomera

Psylliodes chalcomera 0 (Psylliodes chalcomera) is a species in the family Chrysomelidae, commonly known as leaf beetles, belonging to the order Coleoptera (Beetles). It is classified within the subfamily Galerucinae, tribe Alticini, suborder Polypha

Cabbage-stem Flea Beetle

Psylliodes chrysocephala

Length 3 to 4.7 mm. A rather variable flea beetle. The elytra may vary in colour from dark blue or green through to black, though the typical form is dark metallic blue. Variety anglica is yellow to pale brown. It has the thickened thighs that are ty

Psylliodes napi

A small beetle (2.5 to 3.3 mm) it is dark blue, sometimes greenish, and very occasionally bronze. Associated with plants of the Brassicaceae family, the adults are found on the leaves, but the larvae are leaf- and stem-miners. Overwinters as an adult

Pteleon brevicornis

Identification: generally orange, but can vary to all black with stout body and short stout ant.; often on flwrs of globemallow Dets. E. G. Riley, 2016

Viburnum Beetle

Pyrrhalta viburni

A small golden brown beetle (about 5 mm long), nearly always associated with plants of the Viburnum family. On Viburnum plants, such as Guelder Rose, but also feeds on the Wayfaring Tree and garden varieties. Adult beetles emerge in July and August.

Rhabdopterus picipes

Rhabdopterus picipes, the cranberry rootworm, is a species of leaf beetle. It is found in North America.

Rhabdopterus weisei

Identification: Det. E. G. Riley, 2009 Type Locality: Brownsville, Cameron Co., TX (Schaeffer 1919)

Saxinis hornii 0

Saxinis hornii

Identification: A specimen in [Fall's] collection from San Diego Co., Cal., differs only in the colour being almost black, and there can scarcely be a doubt that it is identical with the Lower California form. Syntype Type Locality: San Jose del Cabo

Saxinis omogera

Saxinis omogera is a species in the family Chrysomelidae ("leaf beetles"), in the order Coleoptera ("beetles"). The distribution range of Saxinis omogera includes Central America and North America.

Saxinis sinuata

Per Schaeffer (1906), "This name is proposed for a few specimens collected in Texas (Brownsville) and Arizona (Huachuca Mts.), which have the sides of thorax strongly sinuately narrowing to base from about basal third, which causes the hind angles to

Scelida nigricornis

Scelida nigricornis is a species of leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in Central America and North America.

Scelolyperus schwarzii

Identification: Hind tibiae of male strongly curved (an arc of about 40°) AND pronotum as metallic as elytra; in females, an indication of that curvature also perceptible. Frontlegs partly pale.

Scelolyperus torquatus

Scelolyperus torquatus is a species of skeletonizing leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae.

Sennius cruentatus

Identification: The shape of the elytral maculation will usually separate S. cruentatus from all the U.S. species except S. simulans , which is only known from AZ. Has an all-black form

Sennius guttifer

Identification: Det. E. G. Riley, 2010 – first USA record not reported in Kingsolver

Sennius lebasi

Identification: Body reddish yellow to black, most often dark red; head black, pronotum red to black, often with paler red median line; elytra reddish yellow to dark brown, each elytron with broad, oblique, paler band usually extending from side to s

Sennius leucostauros

Identification: Integument black; antenna reddish brown, fore legs and mid legs reddish brown, metafemoral base black, apical one-third to one-half red. Vestiture white and dark brown; pronotum with median stripe and lateral patches white; scutellum

Sennius medialis

Identification: most closely resembles S. abbreviatus , which has the hind legs black, not red

Sennius simulans 0

Sennius simulans

Type locality: Huachuca Mountain, Cochise Co., Arizona

Smaragdina militaris

Type Locality: One specimen, New Braunfels, Texas, Mr. Lindheimer.

Sphaeroderma testaceum

There are two very similar species of Sphaeroderma in Britain and both feed on Thistles. Both are red coloured and generally round-bodied. S. testaceum is slightly larger but there is much overlap. S. testaceum : Body less strongly rounded, slightly

Spintherophyta globosa

Identification: Det. M. A. Quinn, 2015 apparently does not come to lights nor to flowers, hence few records on iNaturalist ( 6 )

Spintherophyta violaceipennis

Identification: "the elytra with a violaceous tinge inclining to cupreous" (Horn 1892) Type Locality: "Collected in Arizona, precise locality unknown, but from the southern part."

Stator beali

Identification: Body black except each elytron mostly red with black basal and sutural borders Closely resembles S. limbatus but differs in the yellow dorsal vestiture, prosternum separating the procoxae, the lateral elytral macula reaching 5th or 6t

Stator chihuahua

Stator chihuahua is a species of leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in Central America and North America.

Pruinose Bean Weevil

Stator pruininus

Identification: easily recognized within the genus by uniformly gray appearance and reddish-yellow fore and mid legs

Stator subaeneus

Identification: easily separated from other U.S. Stator by the eyes being contiguous with the vertex and sides of the head. Type Locality: Brownsville, Cameron Co., Texas

Stenispa metallica

Identification: the only unicolorous Stenispa in our area

Stenopodius insularis 0

Stenopodius insularis

Stenopodius insularis is a species of beetle of the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in the United States (Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah) and Mexico (Baja California).

Stenopodius martini

Identification: sides of the pronotum straight, top of head yellow

Strabala acuminata

Type Locality: Esperanza Ranch, Brownsville, Cameron Co., Texas

Strongylocassis atripes

Identification: note the wide, shelf-like extension of the explanate elytral margin at the suture (not present in Charidotella ) --E.G. Riley's comment Type Locality: Colorado

Stylantheus macrocerus

Identification: distinctive, may be known from any in our fauna by the extremely long antennae lectotype parasitized by Urosigalphus bruchivorus Crawford (Braconidae)

Sumitrosis inaequalis

Identification: In central Texas, south to the Rio Grande Valley, specimens are on average of a pale coloration (as shown) and often the dark maculae are with slight metallic highlights, unlike the darker forms that occur to the east." - EGR, 2009

Western Fruit Beetle

Syneta albida

Syneta albida is a species of beetles from the family of leaf beetles, subfamily Synetinae.

Synetocephalus autumnalis

Synetocephalus autumnalis is a species of skeletonizing leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in North America.

Synetocephalus diegensis

Identification: Elytral vittae narrow, antennae usually with terminal segments paler; head frequently more reddish than pronotum. Type Locality: San Diego, California

Syphrea nana

Identification: dark, shiny, pronotum with sub-basal crease, irregular (confused) shallow elytral punctations, pale tibia & tarsi, basal antennomeres also pale.

Systena collaris

Identification: quadrate thorax; bluish-black, thorax yellowish-red, base of antennae piceous; head smooth; thorax sparsely, elytra more closely punctate; under side smooth. Det. E. G. Riley Type Locality: Texas (Belfrage, 878).

Dogwood Systena

Systena corni

Identification: differs from the similar S. marginalis by weaker markings and association with Cornus florida

Systena dimorpha

Identification: HOLOTYPE Type Locality: Ordway, Crowley County, Colorado

Systena elongata

Identification: straight yellow stripe along each elytron; curves in slightly at apex; pronotum typically black (dull orange in S. blanda )

Red-headed Systena

Systena frontalis

Identification: in S. hudsonias antennomeres 3‒6 are pale brown Det. M. A. Quinn, 2021

Black-headed Systena

Systena hudsonias

Systena hudsonias, the black-headed flea beetle, is a species of flea beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in North America.

Systena laevis

Identification: one of the palest and smoothest of North American species of Systena , sometimes a reddish-brown, narrow sutural vitta not reaching apex, rarely a trace of a lateral vitta; elytra especially in male not much wider than prothorax. HOLO

Margined Systena

Systena marginalis

Identification: Systena plicata Blatchley is similar in size and color, but has a distinct lateral fold (ridge) along the margin of each elytron (lacking in S. marginalis ). Systena corni is also similar in general appearance but differs in being les

Systena mitis 0

Systena mitis

Identification: Very like S. frontalis , but head sparingly punctate; thorax almost smooth; legs pale, head and thorax ochreous, this with the sides black; elytra as in S. elongata , but with deeper punctures by the scutellum and along the suture. Ve

Systena pallicornis

Type Locality: Brownsville, Texas (Esperanza Ranch). (Schaeffer 1906)

Systena plicata 0

Systena plicata

Type Locality: near Half-Moon Pond, Posey County, Indiana. September 22, 1918.

Bloody-nosed Beetle

Timarcha tenebricosa

This is a large flightless species of beetle. The rounded body is blackish in colour, often with a shiny iridescence. Adults are seen between April and June. Active mainly at night, hiding in moss or under stones during the day. It earns its common n

Australian Tortoise Beetle

Trachymela sloanei

Introduced from Australia. First recorded in 1998 in California.

Triachus postremus

Identification: Prothorax with a row of punctures at base, which is finely but distinctly margined; oval, convex, testaceous, elytra clouded with brown; Texas. (LeConte 1880)

Triariodes vittipennis

Type Locality: “Occurs in southwestern Texas, precise region unknown.” (Horn 1893)

Triarius lividus

Identification: quite variable in appearance. Future study may well prove that multiple true species are involved. ( 3 ) Type Locality: Arizona

Triarius nigroflavus

Identification: sexually dimorphic (BG images show males); females are larger, with orange head and pronotum and a yellow elytra border with black and a longitudinal black stripe in the middle of each elytron. I have only seen records from Orange Cou

Triarius texanus 0

Triarius texanus

Identification: tarsal claws appendiculate; head and metasternum yellow. The elytra are yellow, except for a narrow, dark brown sutural stripe [likely misidentified as T. lividus in some collections] (emphasis added) Holotype male: TEXAS: Brewster Co

Trichaltica scabricula

at high risk of endangerment due to the EAB ( 8 ) Type Locality: Texas (Belfrage)

Trichaltica tibialis

Trichaltica tibialis is a species of flea beetle in the family Chrysomelidae.

Cherry Leaf Beetle

Tricholochmaea cavicollis

Identification: Larvae are dark brown with black and yellow spots; they are about 6mm long. Overwinter as adults. In spring eggs are deposited in the soil at the base of the tree. The larvae climb the tree and feed on the foliage before returning to

Trirhabda attenuata

Trirhabda attenuata is a species of skeletonizing leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in North America.

Groundselbush Beetle

Trirhabda bacharidis

Identification: Note tapering elytral stripes Introduced into Australia and Asia to control Baccharis spp. ( 3 )

Trirhabda diducta

Identification: Compared to T. eriodictyonis (the only other congener feeding on Eriodictyon ), T. diducta typically have wider, well-defined sutural vittae. The pronotal spots and the occipital spot tend to be noticeably larger in T. diducta

Trirhabda eriodictyonis

Other than T. eriodictyonis and T. diducta , only T. flavolimbata from coastal CA has been reported on Eriodictyon , considered an accidental occurrence

Trirhabda flavolimbata

Identification: T. labrata is a lookalike which also feeds on Baccharis pilularis • other congeners in CA that may be mistaken for T. flavolimbata are T. luteocincta & T. sericotrachlya (both on Artemisia californica ); and T. confusa & T. manisi (b

Trirhabda labrata

Identification: syntype • pronotal spots large; elytra entirely bright-green to blue-green except for thin pale margin, with sparse, inconspicuous pubescence T. labrata and T. flavolimbata are the only Trirhabda species reported to use the common coa

Trirhabda lewisii

Identification: (Characters above culled from Blake, Wilcox, and Swigoňová & Kjer)

Trirhabda luteocincta

Identification: Elytra frequently metallic green, blue, purple or purple-black, infrequently vittate. Underside of abdomen dark (green) with metallic luster, densely hairy. Pronotal spots large, with metallic luster, median spot wedge-shaped. Occipit

Trirhabda manisi

Identification: The following description for T. manisi is quoted from the 1970 Ph.D dissertation of S. M. Hogue : Medium-sized; elytra metallic blue-green or green, non-vittate. Head with moderately dense, appressed hairs; epicranium alutaceous; pla

Trirhabda nitidicollis

Identification: (Characters above culled from Blake, Wilcox, and Swigoňová & Kjer)

Trirhabda pilosa

Identification: [Above culled from key and description in Blake (1931)]

Trirhabda pubicollis

Blake's detailed original description from 1951 can be read at: http://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/39697232 .