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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Beetles (Coleoptera) » Polyphaga » Series Cucujiformia » Longhorn and Leaf Beetles (Chrysomeloidea) » Leaf Beetles (Chrysomelidae) » Case-bearing Leaf Beetles (Cryptocephalinae)

Subfamily Cryptocephalinae - Case-bearing Leaf Beetles

Classification · Other Common Names · Explanation of Names · Numbers · Identification · Habitat · Food · Life Cycle · Remarks · See Also · Internet References · Works Cited
Beetle - Coleothorpa dominicana Leaf beetle (2) 10.07.01 - Pachybrachis coloradensis Scriptured Leaf Beetle - Pachybrachis caelatus Case-bearing leaf beetle Cryptocephalus tinctus ? - Cryptocephalus tinctus Pachybrachis sp. - Pachybrachis Diplacaspis prosternalis (Schaeffer) - Diplacaspis prosternalis Tiny black bug with two red spots - Saxinis
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 Cryptocephalinae (Case-bearing Leaf Beetles)
Other Common Names
Cylindrical Leaf Beetles
Explanation of Names
Cryptocephalinae Gyllenhal 1813
Numbers
~350 spp. in 22 genera in our area(1), close to 4,000 spp. worldwide(2)
Identification
Compact, subcylindrical to subglobose; head inserted into the prothorax
Habitat
Larvae live in litter on soil surface(1) or on the leaves of host plant (they drop to the ground when threatened)(3)
Food
Larvae mostly detritivorous, a few consume green leaves(1)
Life Cycle
Larvae are casebearers, living in and protected by a case constructed of their fecal matter and sometimes plant debris. The case is shorter than the larva that remains folded inside it.(1)
Eggs are laid in carefully sculpted packets formed from feces and abdominal secretions (S.M. Clark's comment):
Remarks
Chrysomelids with long, thread-like antennae belong to Cryptocephalinae, but not all Cryptocephalinae have such antennae(4)
See Also
Internet References
(5)
Works Cited
1.American Beetles, Volume II: Polyphaga: Scarabaeoidea through Curculionoidea
Arnett, R.H., Jr., M. C. Thomas, P. E. Skelley and J. H. Frank. (eds.). 2002. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton, FL.
2.Chrysomelid males with enlarged mandibles: three new species and a review of occurrence in the family (Coleoptera:Chrysomelidae)
Reid C.A.M., Beatson M. 2013. Zootaxa 3619: 79–100.
3.Borror and DeLong's Introduction to the Study of Insects
Norman F. Johnson, Charles A. Triplehorn. 2004. Brooks Cole.
4.Coleoptera or Beetles east of the Great Plains
Edwards, J. Gordon. 1949. Edwards Brothers, Ann Arbor, MI. 181 pp.
5.Chamorro M.L. (2011) Cryptocephalinae of the World
Contributed by Beatriz Moisset on 27 March, 2005 - 6:22pm
Additional contributions by Mike Quinn, ceiseman, v belov
Last updated 28 October, 2023 - 11:07am

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