Chrysolina herbacea
A mint leaf beetle
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Infraorder: Cucujiformia
Family: Chrysomelidae
Genus: Chrysolina
Subgenus: Synerga
Species:
C. herbacea
Binomial name
Chrysolina herbacea
(Duftschmid, 1825)
Synonyms
  • Chrysomela herbacea
    Duftschmidt, 1825
  • Chrysomela menthastri
    Suffrian, 1851
  • Chrysomela fulminans
    Suffrian, 1851

Chrysolina herbacea, also known as the mint leaf beetle,[1][2][3] or green mint beetle (in the UK),[4] is a species of beetle in the family Chrysomelidae.

Description

A mint leaf beetle staying on a leaf under mint flowers
Chrysolina herbacea on a mint leaf

The species is generally metallic bright green, with some of the mint leaf beetles having a gold-purple reflection. Variations in colour exist,[3] with certain specimens, in particular females,[5] ranging from golden-red to deep blue. The beetles' legs and pronotum are the same as their basic colour,[3] and they have antennae.[5]

Chrysolina herbacea is large and has a long, oval shape.[6] The adult beetles can be 8–10 mm long and have black-coloured larvae,[4][7] which also feed on mint leaves.[2] The adults have complete wings, but they only seldom fly.[6]

Visually, the mint leaf beetle may be confused with the much rarer tansy beetle (Chrysolina graminis),[3][8] as well as with Cryptocephalus hypochaeridis,[7] and with Chrysolina coerulans.[6]

Distribution

The species can be found in the European islands Great Britain,[3][4] and Ireland,[1] in European countries such as Portugal,[9] and Romania,[10] as well as in the Caucasus, Turkey, western Central Asia,[5] and North India.[6]

Habitat

The mint leaf beetle prefers to live in damp riverside areas and marshy fields,[7] favouring different wet habitats,[3] as well as in woodland, parkland, and gardens.[6] As host plants, the species prefers several Lamiaceae, particularly mints.[3][6]

The beetles are active between May and September.[7] In the UK, the adult beetles start appearing in April or May, being prevalent by late May or early June and remaining like this throughout the whole summer.[6]

The adults lay their eggs in May and June, with the larvae hatching in the middle or at the end of June. The larvae feed throughout the summer and then overwinter, once again becoming active and feeding for a short time in April, after which they pupate in the soil.[6]

The adult beetles live long, and they may overwinter up to two times.[3][6]

References

  1. 1 2 "Chrysolina herbacea (Duftschmid, 1825) (Mint Leaf Beetle)". bioimages.org.uk. Archived from the original on August 21, 2008. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
  2. 1 2 "Mint leaf beetle". BBC Gardeners' World. Archived from the original on November 22, 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Chrysolina herbacea (Duftschmid, 1825)". coleoptera.org.uk. Archived from the original on November 22, 2023. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 "Blue mint beetle". rhs.org.uk. Archived from the original on November 22, 2023. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 "Chrysolina herbacea (Duftschmid, 1825)". biol.uni.wroc.pl. Archived from the original on November 13, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Chrysolina herbacea (Linnaeus, 1758)". ukbeetles.co.uk. Archived from the original on November 22, 2023. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Gibbons, B. - Bloomsbury Pocket Guide to Insects (2014), p. 182, at Google Books
  8. ↑ Oxford, G. S.; Sivell, D.; Dytham, C.; Key, R. (2003). "The jewel of York - Ecology and conservation of the Tansy Beetle". British Wildlife. 14: 332–337. Archived from the original on January 24, 2023. Retrieved January 25, 2017.
  9. ↑ Coelho, J. (April 21, 2010). "Chrysolina herbacea". Flickr. Archived from the original on November 22, 2023. Retrieved February 23, 2012.
  10. ↑ Ilie, A. L.; Abrudan, T. (2019). "Cercetări privind gândacii de frunze (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) din zona Măgești (județul Bihor, România)" [Research on leaf beetles (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) from the Măgești area (Bihor County, Romania)] (PDF). Buletin de Informare Entomologica (in Romanian). Archived (PDF) from the original on November 22, 2023. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
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