Subfamily Galerucinae - Skeletonizing Leaf Beetles and Flea Beetles
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Coleoptera (Beetles)
Suborder Polyphaga
No Taxon (Series Cucujiformia)
Superfamily Chrysomeloidea (Longhorn and Leaf Beetles)
Family Chrysomelidae (Leaf Beetles)
Subfamily Galerucinae (Skeletonizing Leaf Beetles and Flea Beetles)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
multiple evolutionary origins of jumping hindlegs in Galerucinae hinder morphological diagnosis of tribes; only the three-tribe arrangement is supported (Alticini, Galerucini and Serraticollini)(1)
Explanation of Names
Galerucinae Latreille 1802
Numbers
By far the largest subfamily, with 13,000 to 15,000 described spp. in >1000 genera of 7 tribes worldwide and ~700 spp. in 90 genera in our area; Alticini account for >60% of the diversity(2)(3)
Most feed on dicots; some may have adapted to monocots. Adults generally feed on pollen and fresh leaves; the larvae feed on roots. Many species are polyphagous.
Remarks
Some are serious pests, causing damage by feeding on the plant or by transmitting viruses. Some species have been used to control weeds.