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Eucalyptus Leaf Beetle
Paropsisterna sp
-37.8585, 145.323
Field Notes
Description:
Bright candy pink leaf beetles on a young gum tree. The pin and green elytra perfectly matched the colour of the stem galls on which I found this beetle (Pic 1) - ? significance. Pic 2 shows frass extruding out of the rear-end. One of the beetles showed two black marks on the posterior part of the head which is usually hidden under the pronotum (Pic 3). A smaller and paler beetle was also seen running around the leaves ? juvenile. The last two photos are that of eggs. The beetle eggs appeared to be laid loosely in sets of two and where fixed to the leaf at either end the leaf surface seems retracted causing shallow pitting on the other side of leaf (Pic 4)
Habitat:
Spotted several of these on a young Eucalyptus tree - ? species
Notes:
This spotting was inspired by martinl who kindly notified us of the location for these gorgeous beetles. We were lucky to see several and a lot of action. My following spotting will be larvae of these beetles. Did not spot any other species of leaf beetle on the gum trees there.
Martin's spotting:
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/43084090
Mark Ridgway's spotting:
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/43747013
The species is yet to be named...
Family: Chyrsomelidae
Subfamily: Chrysomelinae
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