Neochlamisus
Encyclopedia
Leaf beetle
s of the genus
Neochlamisus are sometimes known as the warty leaf beetles. They are members of the case-bearing leaf beetle group, the Camptosomata
. Measuring 3-4 millimeters in length as adults, they are cryptic
, superficially resembling caterpillar frass
. 17, sometimes 18 species are presently accepted in this genus; some have been moved here from Chlamisus.
e remain on the natal host plant and add to and enlarge their fecal cases as they grow. Case enlargement in Neochlamisus is an elaborate process that larvae perform regularly until the case is sealed to the substrate prior to pupation. During this stage of the life cycle, beetles are immobile and are particularly vulnerable to predation
. After about twenty days the newly hardened adult cuts a clean circle around the apex of the case, lifts this cap, and flies off to feed and mate. Neochlamisus adults feed and mate on the larval host plant species.
Neochlamisus species are typically very host-plant-specific and most species primarily use but a
single host plant genus or even a single species. A rather well-known exception is N. bebbianae
which feeds on particular species from six tree genera representing five different plant families
. N. bebbianae populations associated with each of these plants are referred to as separate "host forms" and are the subject of ongoing studies of host-associated speciation
.
Leaf beetle
Beetles in the family Chrysomelidae are commonly known as leaf beetles. This is a family of over 35,000 species in more than 2,500 genera, one of the largest and most commonly encountered of all beetle families....
s of the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Neochlamisus are sometimes known as the warty leaf beetles. They are members of the case-bearing leaf beetle group, the Camptosomata
Camptosomata
Camptosomata are the case-bearing leaf beetles or camptosomates, named for their habit of carrying a case of waste material as larvae...
. Measuring 3-4 millimeters in length as adults, they are cryptic
Crypsis
In ecology, crypsis is the ability of an organism to avoid observation or detection by other organisms. It may be either a predation strategy or an antipredator adaptation, and methods include camouflage, nocturnality, subterranean lifestyle, transparency, and mimicry...
, superficially resembling caterpillar frass
Frass
Frass is the fine powdery material phytophagous insects pass as waste after digesting plant parts. It causes plants to excrete chitinase due to high chitin levels, it is a natural bloom stimulant, and has high nutrient levels. Frass is known to have abundant amoeba, beneficial bacteria, and fungi...
. 17, sometimes 18 species are presently accepted in this genus; some have been moved here from Chlamisus.
Life history
In the spring, female Neochlamisus lay eggs singly on the leaves or stems of their host plant and then form a case of fecal material around each. The larvaLarva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e remain on the natal host plant and add to and enlarge their fecal cases as they grow. Case enlargement in Neochlamisus is an elaborate process that larvae perform regularly until the case is sealed to the substrate prior to pupation. During this stage of the life cycle, beetles are immobile and are particularly vulnerable to predation
Predation
In ecology, predation describes a biological interaction where a predator feeds on its prey . Predators may or may not kill their prey prior to feeding on them, but the act of predation always results in the death of its prey and the eventual absorption of the prey's tissue through consumption...
. After about twenty days the newly hardened adult cuts a clean circle around the apex of the case, lifts this cap, and flies off to feed and mate. Neochlamisus adults feed and mate on the larval host plant species.
Neochlamisus species are typically very host-plant-specific and most species primarily use but a
single host plant genus or even a single species. A rather well-known exception is N. bebbianae
Neochlamisus bebbianae
Neochlamisus bebbianae is a species in the leaf beetle genus Neochlamisus....
which feeds on particular species from six tree genera representing five different plant families
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
. N. bebbianae populations associated with each of these plants are referred to as separate "host forms" and are the subject of ongoing studies of host-associated speciation
Speciation
Speciation is the evolutionary process by which new biological species arise. The biologist Orator F. Cook seems to have been the first to coin the term 'speciation' for the splitting of lineages or 'cladogenesis,' as opposed to 'anagenesis' or 'phyletic evolution' occurring within lineages...
.
Species
Seventeen species are widely recognised:- Neochlamisus alni (Brown, 1943)
- Neochlamisus assimilis (Klug, 1824)
- Neochlamisus bebbianaeNeochlamisus bebbianaeNeochlamisus bebbianae is a species in the leaf beetle genus Neochlamisus....
(Brown, 1943) - Neochlamisus bimaculatusNeochlamisus bimaculatusNeochlamisus bimaculatus is a small leaf beetle that belongs to the group of casebearers called Camptosomata. They mate, feed, and oviposit on their host plant Rubus spp., which includes blackberry....
Karren, 1972 - Neochlamisus chamaedaphnes (Brown, 1943)
- Neochlamisus comptoniae (Brown, 1943)
- Neochlamisus cribripennis (J. L. LeConte, 1878)
- Neochlamisus eubati (Brown, 1952)
- Neochlamisus fragariae (Brown, 1952)
- Neochlamisus gibbosus (Fabricius, 1777)
- Neochlamisus insularis (Schaeffer, 1926)
- Neochlamisus moestificus (Lacordaire, 1848)
- Neochlamisus plataniNeochlamisus plataniNeochlamisus platani is a species in the leaf beetle genus Neochlamisus. This beetle feeds, mates, and oviposits on their host plant American sycamore . Its common name is the sycamore leaf beetle for this reason....
(Brown, 1952) - Neochlamisus scabripennis (Schaeffer, 1926)
- Neochlamisus subelatus (Schaeffer, 1926)
- Neochlamisus tuberculatus (Klug, 1824)
- Neochlamisus velutinus Karren, 1972