Species Neolochmaea obliterata

Bright-lined Galerucine

Neolochmaea obliterata (Olivier 1808) (1)

Syn: Neolochmaea dilatipennis (Jacoby 1886), synonymized by Takizawa (2003), but still used by (2)(3)

5.5‒7.6 mm

From Galerucinae: hind femur not abnormally broad and adapted for jumping; tarsal claws simple, or bifid with inner lobe comparatively narrow and pointed; procoxal cavities closed behind; tarsomere 1 about as long as 5; external surface of tibiae with ridge extending most of length; Elytra densely pubescent, disc brown with narrow, pale discal vittae; front and middle tibiae of male each with a short, stout spur, but hind tibiae lacking spurs and female lacking spurs in all tibiae; pronotum about 2 times as long as wide; base of pronotum not strongly sinuate posteriorly; antennal segments 3 and 4 about the same length, maybe segment 4 slightly longer(4)(White 1979)

Det. Tyler Hedlund, 2021

recent immigrant to N. Amer, est. FL penninsula / W. Indies / C. & S. Amer. - Map (5)(2)

most common in coastal habitats (2)(3)

Known to feed on the Everglades Key false buttonweed (Spermacoce [=Borreria] terminalis, and shrubby false buttonweed S. verticillata, Rubiaceae) (1)

First found in our area near Miami in 1975

Takizawa, H. (2003). Check list of Chrysomelidae in West Indies (Coleoptera). Hispaniolana (Nueva Serie) 2: 1-125.

White R.E. (1979). A Neotropical leaf beetle established in the United States (Chrysomelidae). Annals of the Entomological Society of America 72(2): 269‒270. (Abstract)