Eucolaspis facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Eucolaspis |
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| Eucolaspis brunnea | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Family: | Chrysomelidae |
| Subfamily: | Eumolpinae |
| Tribe: | Eumolpini |
| Genus: | Eucolaspis Sharp, 1886 |
| Type species | |
| Colaspis puncticollis (= Colaspis pallidipennis White, 1846) Broun, 1880
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Eucolaspis is a type of small beetle, often called a leaf beetle. These beetles are originally from New Zealand. They can sometimes cause problems for apple trees and other fruit plants there. You can also find them in Fiji.
Understanding Eucolaspis Species
Scientists who study insects are called entomologists. They have been trying to figure out exactly how many different kinds, or species, of Eucolaspis beetles exist. It's a bit tricky to agree on the exact number!
Many years ago, scientists like Fabricius (in 1781), White (in 1846), and Broun (between 1880 and 1909) described about 15 different species from New Zealand.
Later, in 1957, a scientist named Shaw looked at the beetles again. He thought there were only five species in New Zealand, and he even found two new ones. But other scientists didn't always agree with his ideas. Around the same time, two new Eucolaspis species were found in Fiji by Bryant and Gressitt.
More recently, in 2015, some researchers used special tools like genetics to study the beetles. They suggested there might only be three main groups of Eucolaspis in New Zealand. However, in 2019, a Spanish entomologist named Jesús Gómez-Zurita did his own research. He mostly agreed with Shaw's earlier findings, saying there are at least five species in New Zealand. He even discovered a brand new species, called Eucolaspis kotatou, near Cape Reinga.
Known Eucolaspis Species
Here are some of the Eucolaspis species that scientists have identified, based on the work of Shaw (1957) and Gómez-Zurita (2019) for New Zealand, and Bryant & Gressitt (1957) for Fiji:
New Zealand Species
- Eucolaspis antennata Shaw, 1957
- Eucolaspis brunnea (Fabricius, 1781)
- Eucolaspis hudsoni Shaw, 1957
- Eucolaspis jucunda (Broun, 1880)
- Eucolaspis kotatou Gómez-Zurita, 2019
- Eucolaspis pallidipennis (White, 1846)
Fiji Species
- Eucolaspis castanea Bryant, 1957
- Eucolaspis saltator Gressitt, 1957
