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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) » Tortoise Beetles and the Hispines (Cassidinae) » Mesomphaliini » Chelymorpha » Argus Tortoise Beetle (Chelymorpha cassidea)

Species Chelymorpha cassidea - Argus Tortoise Beetle

Classification · Other Common Names · Explanation of Names · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Food · Life Cycle · Works Cited
Argus tortoise beetle - Chelymorpha cassidea Argus Tortoise Beetle - Chelymorpha cassidea Chelymorpha (cassidea?) life cycle - Chelymorpha cassidea Argus Tortoise Beetle - Chelymorpha cassidea Newly morphed Tortoise Beetle? - Chelymorpha cassidea Argus Tortoise Beetle - Chelymorpha cassidea - Chelymorpha cassidea Tortoise Beetle - Chelymorpha cassidea Yellow and Black Larva - Chelymorpha cassidea
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 Cassidinae (Tortoise Beetles and the Hispines)
Tribe Mesomphaliini
Genus Chelymorpha
Species cassidea (Argus Tortoise Beetle)
Other Common Names
Milkweed Tortoise Beetle(1); NB: milkweed is not a host(2)
Explanation of Names
Chelymorpha cassidea (Fabricius 1775)
cassidea 'Cassida-like'
Size
8-12 mm
Identification
dorsum glabrous above -- hairy in Ch. phytophagica, a swUS species:
vs
Range
QC-FL to AB-CA; W. Indies [map](3)(4)(5); less common out west
Habitat
Meadows, fields
Food
hosts: Convolvulaceae (other plant associations probably incidental)(2)
Life Cycle
Eggs laid in clusters of 15-30 on leaves. Larvae feed on leaves, carry frass on back. Overwinters as adult.
eggs larvae pupa adult
Works Cited
1.A Manual of Common Beetles of Eastern North America
Dillon, Elizabeth S., and Dillon, Lawrence. 1961. Row, Peterson, and Company.
2.Host plants of leaf beetle species occurring in the United States and Canada
Clark et al. 2004. Coleopterists Society, Special Publication no. 2, 476 pp.
3.Catalog of Leaf Beetles of America North of Mexico
Ed Riley, Shawn Clark, and Terry Seeno. 2003. Coleopterists Society.
4.Annotated list of the leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) of Kentucky: Subfamily Cassidinae
Barney R.J., Clark S.M., Riley E.G. 2007. J. Kentucky Acad. Sci. 68: 132-144.
5.Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
Contributed by Stephen_WV on 10 September, 2004 - 12:50pm
Additional contributions by cotinis, Beatriz Moisset, Chuck Entz, Mike Quinn, v belov
Last updated 22 September, 2022 - 6:23pm

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