Tortoise Beetle

Posted by Noah on September 28, 2003 at 11:48:37:

In Reply to: Unknown beetle posted by tim on September 22, 2003 at 17:13:23:

Tim, I knew from the photo that your beetle was in the family Chrysomelidae. Unfortunately, that family is huge. After looking at 800 or more photos, I have to say, it may or may not have its picture on the Web.
From my entomology textbook, I can tell you that it is in the sub-family called Cassidinae, the Tortoise Beetles. There are over 3,000 different species of Tortoise Beetle. Some of them look like your beetle in shape, while others in this subfamily have "shells" similar to that of a tortoise, flaring at the edges and translucent. They are known for their brilliant coloration. Your beetle is pretty colorful, even compared to other members of this group. It is also at the large end of the size scale, at a half-inch.
I included a photo of another member of the subfamily, but it does not compare to your beetle, which is quite dazzling.

Follow Ups: