Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Chrysina gloriosa (LeConte)
Orig. Comb: Plusiotis gloriosa LeConte, 1854
Explanation of Names
Plusiotis - Greek for rich, wealthy
Chrysina - Greek for gold
Numbers
Four spp north of Mex:
Chrysina gloriosa (LeConte) - AZ-TX
Chrysina woodii (Horn) - NM-TX
Chrysina lecontei (Horn) - AZ-NM
Chrysina beyeri (Skinner) - AZ
Range
west TX, NM, se. AZ / Chihuahua, Sonora, MEX
Very common in the vicinity of the Southwest Research Station of the American Museum of Natural History, near Portal, AZ
(1)Season
June-August (based on 131 specimens in the
TAMU Insect Collection)
Food
Adults feed on Juniper foliage
Larvae are abundant in decaying sycamore (
Platanus wrightii) logs in southeastern Arizona.
(1)Life Cycle
Pupation occurs in the soil in June
(1)Remarks
Pure red forms are rare.
Dave Marqua reports (pers. comm. to MAQ, 2011) only getting about one per yr at his lights in the Davis Mtns of west Texas.
Russell Witkop reports (pers. comm. to MAQ, 2011) "Not only have we caught a pure red one [in AZ] but red tinge is common where we go. I happen to have caught the only Purple [tinged] speciman ever known."
Pure red form from Davis Mtns:
Photo1,
Photo2 of pure red from from SE AZ - CalPhotos
Transitional series from Davis Mtns:
Intermediate forms from TX and AZ:
Witkop's purple spmn from AZ:
Print References
Brady, P. & N. Collins 2010. Differential response to circularly polarized light by the jewel scarab beetle
Chrysina gloriosa. Amer. Naturalist, 175(5) 614:620 (
PDF)
Cazier, M.A. 1951. The genera Chrysina and Plusiotis of north central Mexico (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae). American Museum Novitates, 1516: 1-8.
Fagerlund, R. 1999. A Preliminary Checklist of the Beetles (Coleoptera) of New Mexico With Notes on Their Distribution. Environmental Services, Physical Plant Dept., The University of New Mexico. Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Hawks, D.C. 2001. Taxonomic and nomenclatural changes in Chrysina and synonymic checklist of species (Scarabaeidae: Rutelinae). Occasional Papers of the Consortium Coleopterorum. 4(1): 1-8.
Ritcher, P.O. 1966. White Grubs and Their Allies, a Study of North American Scarabaeoid Larvae. Oregon State University Monograph Series No. 4: 1-219.
Young, F.N. 1957. Notes on the habits of Plusiotis gloriosa LeConte (Scarabaeidae). The Coleopterists Bulletin, 11(3-4): 67-70.
Internet References
Generic Guide to New World Scarab Beetles - University of Nebraska-Lincoln State Museum - Division of Entomology
Texas Entomology - Mike Quinn, 2005
Photos, Factsheet - Natural Worlds
