Galeruca tanaceti
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| Galeruca tanaceti | |
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| Dorsal view | |
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| Lateral view | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Suborder: | Polyphaga |
| Infraorder: | Cucujiformia |
| Family: | Chrysomelidae |
| Subfamily: | Galerucinae |
| Tribe: | Galerucini |
| Genus: | Galeruca |
| Species: | G. tanaceti |
| Binomial name | |
| Galeruca tanaceti | |
Galeruca tanaceti is a species of leaf beetle found in the Palearctic realm, and is the type species of the genus Galeruca. It feeds on various plants in both its adult and larval stages. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
This species is present in the Palearctic realm from Portugal to Japan. It is also present in the Near East and North Africa. It has been introduced to northern America.[1][2]
Habitat
These beetles inhabit dry and sunny areas, meadows and grassy places.[3]
Description
Galeruca tanaceti can reach a length of 6–11 millimetres (0.24–0.43 in). These leaf beetles have a broadly ovate, convex and glabrous body. The head, pronotum and elytra are matt black and densely punctured. The lateral margins of the elytra are explanate. The legs are entirely black, relatively long and slender.[4]
The females are longer than the males. At the time of oviposition the abdomen is greatly enlarged and filled with eggs so much that the elytra cover just one half of the length of the belly. The larvae are dark and covered with bristles on fleshy outgrowths.[5]
