Leptinotarsa haldemani is a glossy green beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is commonly known as Haldeman's green potato beetle. It was named in honour of Samuel Stehman Haldeman

Samuel Stehman Haldeman

Samuel Stehman Haldeman , American naturalist and philologist, was born at Locust Grove, Pennsylvania.Haldeman was educated at Dickinson College. He visited Texas in 1851 to investigate the presidency of an institution there, but declined the position...

, a nineteenth century American entomologist

Entomology

Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology...

 who collected insect specimens in Texas.

Description

This little beetle has a black head, antennae, thorax and legs. Its general body shape is domed and the elytra

Elytron

An elytron is a modified, hardened forewing of certain insect orders, notably beetles and a few of the true bugs ; in most true bugs, the forewings are instead called hemelytra, as only the basal half is thickened while the apex is membranous...

 are usually deep metallic green but sometimes metallic purple or blue.

Distribution

This species is found in Mexico, Central America and the American states of Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.

Host plants

This beetle is found on members of the Solanaceae

Solanaceae

Solanaceae are a family of flowering plants that include a number of important agricultural crops as well as many toxic plants. The name of the family comes from the Latin Solanum "the nightshade plant", but the further etymology of that word is unclear...

 family including wild species of Physalis

Physalis

Physalis is a genus of plants in the nightshade family , native to warm temperate and subtropical regions throughout the world. The genus is characterised by the small orange fruit similar in size, shape and structure to a small tomato, but partly or fully enclosed in a large papery husk derived...

, Solanum douglasii

Solanum douglasii

Solanum douglasii is a species of nightshade known by the common name greenspot nightshade. It is native to the northern half of Mexico and the southwestern south-central United States. Its habitat includes scrub and woodland. It is a perennial herb or subshrub approaching two meters in maximum...

and the Anderson thornbush, Lycium andersonii

Lycium andersonii

Lycium andersonii is a perennial shrub of the family Solanaceae, the Nightshades. It is commonly known by such names as Anderson Thornbush, Anderson Wolfberry, Anderson Lycium, Anderson Desert Thorn, Anderson Boxthorn, and more ambiguously as "tomatillo", Desert Tomato or "wolf berry"...

. It is also occasionally found on potatoes.