False potato beetle
Encyclopedia
The false potato beetle (sometimes horsenettle beetle), Leptinotarsa juncta, is a beetle
found primarily in the Mid-Atlantic
and southeastern
regions of the United States
. Recently, it has also been discovered in the northeastern portion of Ohio as well. Adult beetles emerge from the soil in the late spring or early summer and begin breeding, and a population may go through one to three generations in a summer.
The false potato beetle feeds on solanaceous weeds
, such as horsenettle, Solanum carolinense. It also feeds on other solanaceous plants, such as species of ground cherry or husk tomato, Physalis
spp., and bittersweet, Solanum dulcamara
, but no growth and reproduction occurs when feeding on the potato
, Solanum tuberosum.
L. juncta can be easily confused with its close cousin the Colorado potato beetle
, Leptinotarsa decemlineata. While the adult false potato beetle has alternating black and white strips on its back, just like the Colorado potato beetle, one of the white strips in the center of each wing cover is missing and replaced by a light brown strip. The eggs are slightly larger and fewer are found in a cluster. The hump-backed larva is similar, but with only one row of dark spots on each side.
The two species, L. juncta and L. decemlineata, can be found on the same solanaceous host plants but are apparently incapable of crossbreeding. Of the two, only the Colorado potato beetle is a serious pest.
Beetle
Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms...
found primarily in the Mid-Atlantic
Mid-Atlantic States
The Mid-Atlantic states, also called middle Atlantic states or simply the mid Atlantic, form a region of the United States generally located between New England and the South...
and southeastern
Southeastern United States
The Southeastern United States, colloquially referred to as the Southeast, is the eastern portion of the Southern United States. It is one of the most populous regions in the United States of America....
regions of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Recently, it has also been discovered in the northeastern portion of Ohio as well. Adult beetles emerge from the soil in the late spring or early summer and begin breeding, and a population may go through one to three generations in a summer.
The false potato beetle feeds on solanaceous weeds
Solanaceae
Solanaceae are a family of flowering plants that include a number of important agricultural crops as well as many toxic plants. The name of the family comes from the Latin Solanum "the nightshade plant", but the further etymology of that word is unclear...
, such as horsenettle, Solanum carolinense. It also feeds on other solanaceous plants, such as species of ground cherry or husk tomato, Physalis
Physalis
Physalis is a genus of plants in the nightshade family , native to warm temperate and subtropical regions throughout the world. The genus is characterised by the small orange fruit similar in size, shape and structure to a small tomato, but partly or fully enclosed in a large papery husk derived...
spp., and bittersweet, Solanum dulcamara
Solanum dulcamara
Solanum dulcamara, also known as bittersweet, bittersweet nightshade, bitter nightshade, blue bindweed, Amara Dulcis, climbing nightshade, fellenwort, felonwood, poisonberry, poisonflower, scarlet berry, snakeberry, trailing bittersweet, trailing nightshade, violet bloom, or woody...
, but no growth and reproduction occurs when feeding on the potato
Potato
The potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well as the edible tuber. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species...
, Solanum tuberosum.
L. juncta can be easily confused with its close cousin the Colorado potato beetle
Colorado potato beetle
The Colorado potato beetle , also known as the Colorado beetle, the ten-striped spearman, the ten-lined potato beetle or the potato bug, is an important pest of potato crops. It is approximately 10 mm long, with a bright yellow/orange body and five bold brown stripes along the length of each...
, Leptinotarsa decemlineata. While the adult false potato beetle has alternating black and white strips on its back, just like the Colorado potato beetle, one of the white strips in the center of each wing cover is missing and replaced by a light brown strip. The eggs are slightly larger and fewer are found in a cluster. The hump-backed larva is similar, but with only one row of dark spots on each side.
The two species, L. juncta and L. decemlineata, can be found on the same solanaceous host plants but are apparently incapable of crossbreeding. Of the two, only the Colorado potato beetle is a serious pest.
External links
- potato beetles, Leptinotarsa spp. on the UFUniversity of FloridaThe University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
/ IFASInstitute of Food and Agricultural SciencesThe University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is a federal-state-county partnership dedicated to developing knowledge in agriculture, human and natural resources, and the life sciences, and enhancing and sustaining the quality of human life by making that information...
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