Imported taxonomy record. Source availability varies; see the source references and editorial policy below.
Habitat and Range
Geographic Range
e.NA to NM (QC‒FL to MB‒NM) - Map
Diet and Behavior
Diet: Polyphagous, known to feed on 17 plant families ( 3 )
Additional species information
Species notes from the sources
Etymology: Systena hudsonias (Forster 1771)
About Primitive Winged Insects: the wider group
Order-level background for Coleoptera, the group containing Systena hudsonias. Species-specific details appear above.
Group overview
Coleoptera is the largest order of insects with over 400,000 described species, representing ~25% of all known animal species and ~40% of all insects. In the U.S. alone, nearly 30,000 beetle species have been identified.
Ecological role of the group
Beetles are prominent decomposers, especially in forests, breaking down dead wood and recycling nutrients. As predators, they reduce populations of pest insects. Many species are also important pollinators of flowering plants.
Economic and practical significance of the group
Beetles have major economic significance: leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae) and weevils (Curculionoidea) are among the most destructive agricultural pests globally, costing billions annually, while predatory species like ladybugs provide natural pest control.
Recorded sources for this group: Britannica, Smithsonian, NCSU Entomology. Imported estimates may describe particular regions or reporting periods.
(c) Mike Quinn, San Marcos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mike Quinn, San Marcos | (c) Tom Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tom Murray | (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell | (c) Alison Place, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alison Place | (c) Clarence Holmes, all rights reserved, uploaded by Clarence Holmes | (c) Steve King, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steve King | (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz | (c) bugsforgen22, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) | Contributed by tom murray; Additional contributions by cotinis , Mike Quinn , v belov(c) Mike Quinn, San Marcos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mike Quinn, San Marcos | (c) Tom Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tom Murray | (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell | (c) Alison Place, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alison Place | (c) Clarence Holmes, all rights reserved, uploaded by Clarence Holmes | (c) Steve King, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steve King | (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz | (c) bugsforgen22, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) | Contributed by tom murray; Additional contributions by cotinis , Mike Quinn , v belov(c) Mike Quinn, San Marcos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mike Quinn, San Marcos | (c) Tom Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tom Murray | (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell | (c) Alison Place, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alison Place | (c) Clarence Holmes, all rights reserved, uploaded by Clarence Holmes | (c) Steve King, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steve King | (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz | (c) bugsforgen22, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) | Contributed by tom murray; Additional contributions by cotinis , Mike Quinn , v belov(c) Mike Quinn, San Marcos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mike Quinn, San Marcos | (c) Tom Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tom Murray | (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell | (c) Alison Place, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alison Place | (c) Clarence Holmes, all rights reserved, uploaded by Clarence Holmes | (c) Steve King, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steve King | (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz | (c) bugsforgen22, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) | Contributed by tom murray; Additional contributions by cotinis , Mike Quinn , v belov(c) Mike Quinn, San Marcos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mike Quinn, San Marcos | (c) Tom Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tom Murray | (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell | (c) Alison Place, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alison Place | (c) Clarence Holmes, all rights reserved, uploaded by Clarence Holmes | (c) Steve King, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steve King | (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz | (c) bugsforgen22, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) | Contributed by tom murray; Additional contributions by cotinis , Mike Quinn , v belov(c) Mike Quinn, San Marcos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mike Quinn, San Marcos | (c) Tom Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tom Murray | (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell | (c) Alison Place, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alison Place | (c) Clarence Holmes, all rights reserved, uploaded by Clarence Holmes | (c) Steve King, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steve King | (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz | (c) bugsforgen22, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) | Contributed by tom murray; Additional contributions by cotinis , Mike Quinn , v belov(c) Mike Quinn, San Marcos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mike Quinn, San Marcos | (c) Tom Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tom Murray | (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell | (c) Alison Place, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alison Place | (c) Clarence Holmes, all rights reserved, uploaded by Clarence Holmes | (c) Steve King, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steve King | (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz | (c) bugsforgen22, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) | Contributed by tom murray; Additional contributions by cotinis , Mike Quinn , v belov(c) Mike Quinn, San Marcos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mike Quinn, San Marcos | (c) Tom Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tom Murray | (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell | (c) Alison Place, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alison Place | (c) Clarence Holmes, all rights reserved, uploaded by Clarence Holmes | (c) Steve King, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steve King | (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz | (c) bugsforgen22, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) | Contributed by tom murray; Additional contributions by cotinis , Mike Quinn , v belov
Photo credits: (c) Mike Quinn, San Marcos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Mike Quinn, San Marcos | (c) Tom Murray, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Tom Murray | (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell | (c) Alison Place, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Alison Place | (c) Clarence Holmes, all rights reserved, uploaded by Clarence Holmes | (c) Steve King, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steve King | (c) Even Dankowicz, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Even Dankowicz | (c) bugsforgen22, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) | Contributed by tom murray; Additional contributions by cotinis , Mike Quinn , v belov
Frequently Asked Questions About Black-headed Systena
What is Black-headed Systena?
Black-headed Systena (Systena hudsonias) is a species in the family Chrysomelidae, within the order Coleoptera.
How big is Black-headed Systena?
3.7-4.6 mm
Where is Black-headed Systena found?
Range: e.NA to NM (QC‒FL to MB‒NM) - Map
What does Black-headed Systena eat?
The diet of the Black-headed Systena includes Polyphagous, known to feed on 17 plant families ( 3 ).
