Trirhabda virgata
| Trirhabda virgata | ||||||||||||
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Trirhabda virgata |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Trirhabda virgata | ||||||||||||
| ( LeConte , 1865) |
Trirhabda virgata is a beetle in the leaf beetle family. The species has no German trivial name , in French it is called Chrysomèle rayée de la verge d'or (possible translation: "Goldbanded Blattkäfer") in English skeletonizing leaf beetle ("skeletonizing leaf beetle"). It iswidespreadin North America . It feeds on the leaves of various plants and reaches a length of 6 to 12 mm.
features
The antennae reach 3/4 of the body length, they consist of eleven antennae segments. The second is slightly shortened while the fourth is a little longer. The head is slightly conical, only slightly wider than long and decorated with three black spots on the top. The mouthparts are dark in color, the eyes black, of medium size and slightly protruding. The pronotum is larger than the head, and indented in the middle, it is adorned with three thick black dots. When closed, the upper wings take the form of a pointed arch, with the outer lines being convex. They are drawn with three black longitudinal bands that do not unite at the end of the body, which is a special feature of the species. The feet are yellow-brown and drawn with thin longitudinal stripes.
Way of life
The larva lives underground and feeds on roots and sometimes leaves. The adult animal lives on leaves and stems of plants, as well as flowers and pollen.
Similar species
The genus Trirhabda comprises 26 species. Trirhabda virgata is easily confused with some other species in the genus. This includes:
- Trirhabda adela , a speciescommonin southern Québec but less common
- Trirhabda borealis , with narrower bands
- Trirhabda canadensis , with a band that converges at the end of the body
