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Donacia aquatica

Taxonomy

  • Polyphaga
  • Chrysomeloidea
  • Chrysomelidae
  • Donacia
  • Donacia aquatica
Common name
Zircon Reed Beetle

Description

Size: 6.7-8.8mm
Basic colour: Shining gold
Pattern colour: Elytra with broad rainbow-brilliant reddish-purple longitudinal band
Number of spots: None
Pronotoum: As basic colour
Leg colour: As basic colour

Widespread in the Palaearctic.

Biology

Status: Rare (RDB3)
RDB Category: Rare (RDB3)
UKBAP Species: Yes
Habitat: Sedge-dominated vegetation at the margins of open standing water; also flushed areas with rushes by upland tarns.
Host plant: various sedges, bur-reeds, sweet-grasses etc.
Overwintering: Adults may overwinter on land, but details uncertain.
Food: Adults on leaves, larvae at roots.

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Donacia cinerea

Taxonomy

  • Polyphaga
  • Chrysomeloidea
  • Chrysomelidae
  • Donacia
  • Donacia cinerea

Description

Size: 7.3-10.5mm
Basic colour: Bronze (rarely dark green) but covered in short, pale pubescence making the colour appear shiny silver-grey to pale brownish. This is unique among British Donaciinae
Pattern colour: None
Number of spots: None
Pronotoum: As basic colour
Leg colour: As basic colour

Palaearctic

Biology

Status: Scattered in England and Wales, recorded from Ireland, one old record from Scotland.
Habitat: Emergent vegetation growing in still water.
Host plant: Bulrushes (Typha spp.), sometimes other plants.
Overwintering: Three-year life cycle, overwintering as adults in cocoons.
Food: Adults on leaves (feeding on the upper epidermis and pulp, leaving the thin, membranous lower epidermis intact); larvae on roots.

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Donacia bicolora

Taxonomy

  • Polyphaga
  • Chrysomeloidea
  • Chrysomelidae
  • Donacia
  • Donacia bicolora

Description

Size: 8-10.2mm
Basic colour: Bright greenish gold, sometimes (in later summer) greenish-blue to deep purple-blue.
Pattern colour: None
Number of spots: None
Other colour forms: Sometimes
Pronotoum: As basic colour
Leg colour: As basic colour
Confusion species: Donacia marginata
, Confusion species: Donacia obscura

Palaearctic.

Biology

Status: Widely scattered in southern England and Northern Ireland (especially around the Fermanagh lakes), a few records from Wales, none from Scotland. Vulnerable (RDB2)
RDB Category: Vulnerable (RDB2)
UKBAP Species: Yes
Habitat: By water, usually but not always flowing.
Host plant: Branched bur-reed (Sparganium erectum), larvae and cocoons from rhizomes and roots, respectively, of common club-rush (Schoenoplectus lacustris).
Overwintering: Unknown
Food: Adults on leaves, larvae on rhizomes.

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Donacia crassipes

Taxonomy

  • Polyphaga
  • Chrysomeloidea
  • Chrysomelidae
  • Donacia
  • Donacia crassipes
Common name
Water-Lily Reed Beetle

Description

Size: 8.1-10.8mm
Basic colour: Dark and shiny; purplish or coppery reflection, sometimes greenish.
Pattern colour: None
Number of spots: None
Pronotoum: As basic colour
Leg colour: As basic colour in part, partly red-brown. Hind legs long and curved.
Confusion species: Donacia versicolorea

Palaearctic.

Biology

Status: Widely scattered. Scarce (Notable B)
Habitat: With water-lilies.
Host plant: Water-lilies Nuphar spp. & Nymphaea spp.
Overwintering: Three-year life cycle with adults overwintering in cocoons.
Food: Adults on upper surface of leaves.
Other notes: Elytra relatively flattened (like D. versicolorea) but larger and with an earlier season (from May).

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Donacia clavipes

Taxonomy

  • Polyphaga
  • Chrysomeloidea
  • Chrysomelidae
  • Donacia
  • Donacia clavipes

Description

Size: 8.3-10.5mm
Basic colour: Shiny metallic brassy-green to coppery.
Pattern colour: None
Number of spots: None
Pronotoum: As basic colour
Leg colour: Red-brown

Palaearctic.

Biology

Status: Widespread and locally abundant, but widely scattered. Scarce (Notable B)
Habitat: Common reed (Phragmites australis) beds in various situations.
Host plant: Common reed (Phragmites australis)
Overwintering: Three-year life cycle with adults overwintering in cocoons.
Food: Adults on young leaf-shoots, larvae on roots.

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Dibolia cynoglossi

Taxonomy

  • Polyphaga
  • Chrysomeloidea
  • Chrysomelidae
  • Dibolia
  • Dibolia cynoglossi

Description

Size: 2.4-3mm
Basic colour: Metallic bronze or dark green
Pattern colour: None
Number of spots: None
Pronotoum: As basic colour
Leg colour: As basic colour with tibiae yellowish-reddish

Post-1970 records only from coastal shingle at Dungeness, Kent and Rye Harbour, Sussex.

Biology

Status: Endangered (RDB1)
RDB Category: Endangered
Habitat: Recently only from coastal shingle; previously known from woodland rides, clearings and margins, and chalky hillsides.
Host plant: Various Lamiaceae
Overwintering: As adults
Food: Leaves of host plants (larvae mine leaves)
Other notes: Distinctive bifid apical spur on hind tibia. Hind femora highly swollen, even for flea beetles; able to jump long distances and hence difficult to collect.

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Diabrotica virgifera

Taxonomy

  • Polyphaga
  • Chrysomeloidea
  • Chrysomelidae
  • Diabrotica
  • Diabrotica virgifera
Common name
Western Corn Rootworm

Description

Size: 5-6mm
Basic colour: Yellow
Pattern colour: Elytra yellow with wide dark sutural band and lateral longitudinal band; these may be joined by a wide transverse band.
Number of spots: None
Pronotoum: Yellow, occasionally with small brown marks.
Leg colour: Darkened with femora yellow beneath

Widespread in North and Central America where it is a major pest of maize. Found at several locations in Surrey and Berkshire in 2003, and and persisted around Gatwick & Heathrow Airports until 2007. Following extermination efforts, there have been no records since then, hence it may have been successfully exterminated in Britain although this is not absolutely certain and it is spreading in several southern European countries.

Biology

Status: Invasive species found mainly near major airports
Habitat: On maize crops (or transported in transported maize), though originally a more general grassland species.
Host plant: Maize
Overwintering: Unknown in the UK
Food: Adults on maize and other grassland species, larvae exclusively on maize.
Other notes: Capable of long-distance migratory flights (20-100 km/year)

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