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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Beetles (Coleoptera) » Water, Rove, Scarab, Longhorn, Leaf and Snout Beetles (Polyphaga) » Long-horned and Leaf Beetles (Chrysomeloidea) » Leaf Beetles (Chrysomelidae) » Skeletonizing Leaf Beetles and Flea Beetles (Galerucinae) » Flea Beetles (Alticini) » Asphaera » Shiny Flea Beetle (Asphaera lustrans)

Species Asphaera lustrans - Shiny Flea Beetle

Classification · Other Common Names · Synonyms and other taxonomic changes · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Size · Identification · Range · Food · Remarks · Print References · Internet References · Works Cited

Larva of shining flea beetle - Asphaera lustrans

flea beetle, another side view - Asphaera lustrans

Asphaera lustrans - Shiny Flea Beetle - Asphaera lustrans

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Coleoptera (Beetles)

Suborder Polyphaga (Water, Rove, Scarab, Longhorn, Leaf and Snout Beetles)

Superfamily Chrysomeloidea (Long-horned and Leaf Beetles)

Family Chrysomelidae (Leaf Beetles)

Subfamily Galerucinae (Skeletonizing Leaf Beetles and Flea Beetles)

Tribe Alticini (Flea Beetles)

Genus Asphaera

Species lustrans (Shiny Flea Beetle)

Other Common Names

Shining Flea Beetle

In Florida this is sometimes called the Gator beetle - due to the orange and blue-black colors approximating those of the UF Gators...

Synonyms and other taxonomic changes

Orig. Comb: Oedionychus lustrans Crotch 1873

Explanation of Names

lustr - Latin for Shining, pure, washed (1)

Numbers

2 spp. n. of Mex., however records of A. abdominalis [TX & AZ] need confirmation. (2)

Size

~7mm long, 5mm wide

Identification

Adult body entirely orange except for blue-black elytra.

Larva light yellow-orange, to about 10 mm.

Range

AZ-LA-IA-NE, introduced to FL. (3) Also MS-GA per pix posted here.

Food

Larvae and adults feed on skullcap (Scutellaria sp.), other records such as willow (Salix sp.) may be incidental. (4)

Remarks

First FL report 1999, now apparently widespread in that state.

Print References

Crotch, G.R. 1873. Check List of the Coleoptera of America, North of Mexico. Naturalists Agency, Salem, Mass. 136 pp.

Internet References

Texas Entomology- includes range maps

Works Cited

1.	Dictionary of Word Roots and Combining Forms By Donald J. Borror

2.	American Beetles, Volume II: Polyphaga: Scarabaeoidea through Curculionoidea By Arnett, R.H., Jr., M. C. Thomas, P. E. Skelley and J. H. Frank. (eds.)

3.	Catalog of Leaf Beetles of America North of Mexico By Ed Riley, Shawn Clark, and Terry Seeno

4.	Host Plants of Leaf Beetle Species Occuring in the United States and Canada By Shawn Clark, Douglas LeDoux, Terry Seeno, Edward Riley, Arthur Gilbert, and James Sullivan. 2004.

Contributed by Hannah Nendick-Mason on 12 September, 2004 - 11:16am
Additional contributions by Joshua Stuart Rose, Mike Quinn
Last updated 17 April, 2011 - 8:37am

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