Syzigium leaf beetle

I agree that Stephen is unlikely to be wrong. He might even know it from NZ?? I would not expect Chris to be wrong either. I suggest we leave names as they are until I uncover some more data.

Mark. This little pest has given me some difficulty to identify. Geoff Walker also has a lilly pilly in Murrumbeena and can find it all year round. It has pronotal trichobothrial setae therefore cannot be Paropsisterna. Daniel Dobrosak who is the Peltoschema expert in Victoria does not recognize it. Dr. Chris Reid said he has "a Paropsides on his Syzigium beside my office" in Sydney but gave no species name. I am sure he knows but he gets too busy to tend to my fickle and ignorant questions. That would mean it has four trichobothrial setae but I could only ever find two on my specimens, so I called it Peltoschema. (They are hard to see and often folded under or broken off) . Nevertheless, he will be correct. Check my site, it is continually updating. https://sites.google.com/site/leafbeetlesofaustralia/paropsides Chew will be wrong, a rare mistake for him, however, there is a slim possibly a green Paropsisterna exists, another ambiguous image exists on BB on eucalyptus. If you see it called Calomela pallida, it is a bad mistake by someone I will not name. When you see it misnamed Peltoschema, they probably copied my mistake. I will correct everybody when I find out the species name, then I only have to do it once.

I now think this beetle is peltoschema. The only green beetles I know are calomela and peltoschema. I would suggest that you or your neighbor have a lillipilly bush because that is how we finally discovered this species. Peltoschema is determined by more narrow tarsi and bristles on the corner of the pronotum. https://sites.google.com/site/calomelagallery/calomela-gallery

I think that counting the number of rows of pitting along the elytra is important but I've never bothered. Peltoschema should have less. I've seen some bad guesses for chrysomelids on BB. Brisbane insects has some bold ID including this one but I think they have been checked by Chris Reid and are correct, as usual.

Nice beetle. Very nice. I haven't seen this one yet but you guys have seen several. Feeling a little green myself :) I vote for Paropsisterna. The pronotum of peltoschema should flair out as far as the elytra do. Paropsis and paropsisterna have pronotum narrower than the hem-line of the elytra. At least that's my theory.