Leaf beetle
The family
Chrysomelidae, commonly known as
leaf beetles, includes over 35,000 species in more than 2,500 genera, making it one of the largest and most commonly encountered of all beetle families. Numerous subfamilies are recognized, but only some of them are listed below. Leaf beetles are partially recognizable by their tarsal formula, which appears to be 4-4-4, but is actually 5-5-5. Some lineages are only distinguished with difficulty from long-horned beetles, namely by the antennae
not arising from frontal tubercles. Adult and larval leaf beetles feed on all sorts of plant tissue. Many are serious pests of cultivated plants, for example the Colorado potato beetle, the asparagus beetle, the cereal leaf beetle, and various flea beetles, and a few act as vectors of plant diseases. Others are beneficial due to their use in biocontrol of invasive weeds. Most Chrysomelidae are conspicuously colored, typically in glossy yellow to red or metallic blue-green hues, and some have spectacularly bizarre shapes. Thus, they are highly popular among insect collectors.