Chrysochus auratus
Dogbane leaf beetle (Chrysomelidae). Naples, New York, USA.
Xanthonia
The small brownish leaf beetles in the genus Xanthonia are a common but often overlooked insect, usually associated with oak trees. Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Texas, USA.
A gregarious cluster of Paropsisterna eucalyptus leaf beetles. These insects are chemically defended and are apparently more successful in advertising that fact in numbers. Yandoit, Victoria, Australia
When disturbed, Paropsisterna eucalyptus leaf beetle larvae evert abdominal glands that release poisonous hydrogen cyanide gas. Yandoit, Victoria, Australia
Stolas
A tropical leaf beetle, Stolas sp. (Chrysomelidae) Armenia, Belize
Hemisphaerota cyanea
Palmetto Tortoise Beetle- mating pair. Gainesville, Florida, USA
Plagiometriona c.f. clavata larva with fecal shield
La Selva Biological Station, Costa Rica (Thanks to Carlos de la Rosa for rearing the larva out for an identification)
Larvae of many leaf beetles wear a shield of their own excretia as a defensive strategy. La Selva Biological Station, Costa Rica. (Thanks to Carlos de la Rosa for rearing the larva out for an identification)
Glyptoscelis pubescens
Hairy leaf beetle. South Bristol, New York, USA.
Aspicela bourcieri
Maquipucuna Reserve, Ecuador.
Calligrapha
Leaf beetles in the genus Calligrapha are aptly named for the inscriptions on their elytra. Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Austin, USA.
Zygogramma
Leaf Beetle. Huachuca Mountains, Arizona, USA.
Leaf Beetles. Huachuca Mountains, Arizona, USA.
Chrysomelidae
Chemically defended insects, like these willow-feeding leaf beetle larvae, can amplify their toxicity by aggregating. Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Texas, USA.
Cryptocephalus notatus
A colorful leaf beetle on a live oak. Many leaf beetles have specialized diets, but this one feeds broadly across a number of plants. Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Texas, USA.
The massive hind femora of this flea beetle hold the muscles that power its jumping legs. Mindo, Pichincha, Ecuador.
Chrysomelidae: Alticinae
A pair of flea beetles mating. Yandoit, Australia, USA.
Protected by a spiny shield of its own excrement, a tropical beetle munches away on a leaf. Refugio Amazonas, Tambopata, Peru.
Coptocycla texana
Larvae of the anacua tortoise beetle are protected not just by a ring of spines but by a shield made from its own feces. Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Texas, USA.
Leptinotarsa decemlineata
Colorado potato beetle. Urbana, Illinois, USA.
Asphaera sp.
A droplet-covered flea beetle in the Ecuadorian cloud forest. Mindo, Pichincha, Ecuador.
A pair of leaf beetles, mating. Mindo, Pichincha, Ecuador.
Diabrotica
A Diabrotica spotted cucumber beetle clings to goldenrod in an early autumn prairie sunset. Urbana, Illinois, USA
Diabrotica virgifera
Western Corn Rootworm - Diabrotica virgifera
Western Corn Rootworm (Diabrotica virgifera) on a soybean. Farmers have traditionally fought this insect by rotating corn out with soybeans every year. The insect lays its eggs in the soil, and in rotated fields the emerging young rootworms find themselves lost in a sea of inedible plants. Yet some populations adapted, flying to soy fields to lay eggs so their offspring catch next year's corn.
Diabrotica undecimpunctata
A spotted cucumber beetle forages across a dill flower. Austin, Texas, USA.
Spotted cucumber beetle. Austin, Texas, USA.
A leaf beetle larva showing visible defensive glands along the side of the body. Austin, Texas, USA.
Chrysomela
A leaf beetle sheds its larval exoskeleton, molting into a pupa. Brackenridge Field Lab, Texas, USA.
Gibbobruchus mimus
An adult redbud Bruchus visits a rose. Urbana, Illinois, USA.
Plectrodera scalator
Portrait of a cottonwood borer beetle, Plectrodera scalator, one of the most beautiful longhorn beetles in eastern North America. Austin, Texas, USA.
Derobrachus hovorei
Palo verde root borer beetle (Cerambycidae). Tucson, Arizona, USA.
Palo verde root borer beetle (Cerambycidae). Tucson, Arizona, USA
Moneilema gigas
Cactus longhorn beetle (Cerambycidae). Tucson, Arizona, USA.
Sphaenothecus bilineatus
Austin, Texas, USA
