Aphthona

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Protostomia
Cladus: Ecdysozoa
Cladus: Panarthropoda
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Hexapoda
Classis: Insecta
Cladus: Dicondylia
Subclassis: Pterygota
Cladus: Metapterygota
Infraclassis: Neoptera
Cladus: Eumetabola
Cladus: Endopterygota
Superordo: Coleopterida
Ordo: Coleoptera
Subordo: Polyphaga
Infraordo: Cucujiformia
Cladus: Phytophaga
Superfamilia: Chrysomeloidea

Familia: Chrysomelidae
Subfamilia: Galerucinae
Tribus: Alticini
Subtribus: Aphthonina
Genus: Aphthona
Species: A. abdominalis – A. aeneomicans – A. alanyensis – A. albertinae – A. albescens – A. alcina – A. alexander – A. almorensis – A. amamiana – A. andrewesi – A. antennata – A. archeri – A. atrocaerulea – A. atrovirens – A. babai – A. basantapurica – A. beauprei – A. beckeri – A. bengalica – A. bergeali – A. bergealoides – A. bilyi – A. binotata – A. biokovensis – A. bombayensis – A. bonvouloiri – A. brevis – A. cangshanensis – A. carbonaria – A. carinipennis – A. chalchica – A. chayuana – A. chekanovskii – A. chiangmaiensis – A. chinchihi – A. chinensis – A. chrysomelina – A. clara – A. constantini – A. coreana – A. crassicornis – A. crassipes – A. crypta – A. cryptomorpha – A. cyanipennis – A. cyparissiae – A. czwalinai – A. dalatensis – A. delicatula – A. depressa – A. dhrubi – A. dhunche – A. dobangensis – A. dohertyi – A. dongchuanica – A. erichsoni – A. erythropoda – A. espagnoli – A. euphorbiae – A. flava – A. flaviceps – A. formosana – A. franzi – A. fuentei – A. furthi – A. fuscothailandensis – A. gardneri – A. gerhardi – A. glebi – A. gracilipes – A. gracilis – A. gressitti – A. gruevi – A. guamensis – A. habashanica – A. hammarstroemi – A. hauseri – A. herbigrada – A. heveli – A. hissarica – A. hitam – A. howenchuni – A. illigeri – A. indica – A. indochinensis – A. interstitialis – A. jacobsoni – A. jakuta – A. jalalabadensis – A. jordanica – A. juliana – A. kanaraensis – A. kashmirensis – A. kaszabi – A. kocheri – A. konstantinovi – A. kubani – A. kuntzei – A. kurosawai – A. lacertosa – A. laeta – A. laetoides – A. lantangi – A. lopatini – A. lubischevi – A. lutescens – A. luzonica – A. maculata – A. maghrebina – A. maldesi – A. mariki – A. marshalli – A. martensi – A. medvedevi – A. melancholica – A. melanopoda – A. metallica – A. microcephala – A. mimica – A. modesta – A. mohri – A. mude – A. neoerythropoda – A. nepalensis – A. nigriceps – A. nigrilabris – A. nigriscutis – A. nigrita – A. nonstriata – A. occitana – A. okinawaensis – A. olegi – A. omeishanica – A. ovata – A. ovatipennis – A. ovatoidea – A. pallida – A. parnassicola – A. paropaca – A. pelmoides – A. perminuta – A. perrisi – A. phalchoki – A. piceipes – A. piciventris – A. placida – A. potanini – A. poupillieri – A. promissa – A. przhevalskii – A. pseudocrypta – A. punctiventris – A. pygmaea – A. rawalpindica – A. reinecki – A. reitteri – A. renhwai – A. rhodiensis – A. rufosanguinea – A. rufothoracica – A. rugipennis – A. russica – A. sandrae – A. sardea – A. sarmatica – A. schereri – A. semicyanea – A. semivaripes – A. semiviridis – A. siamica – A. simlaensis – A. sicelidis – A. signatifrons – A. silinica – A. simlaensis – A. singalilaensis – A. sinuatipennis – A. spenceri – A. splendida – A. steineri – A. strigosa – A. stussineri – A. subovata – A. syriaca – A. taiwana – A. tamdaoensis – A. tamila – A. taniae – A. tenasserimae – A. testaceicornis – A. thailandensis – A. thikana – A. tolli – A. transparens – A. trivialis – A. ussuriensis – A. valachica – A. variolosa – A. varipes – A. vaulogeri – A. venustula – A. violacea – A. wagneri – A. warchalowskii – A. weiseana – A. whitfieldi – A. wittmeri – A. yangsoensis – A. yaosanica – A. yunnanica – A. yunnomontana
Name

Aphthona Chevrolat in Dejean, 1836: 391

Type species: Altica cyparissiae Koch, 1803, by subsequent designation by Chûjô (1937: 119).
Synonymy

Pseudeugonotes Jacoby, 1899: 531 (synonymized by Biondi & D'Alessandro, 2010)
Type species: Pseudeugonotes vannutellii Jacoby, 1899, by monotypy.
Ectonia Weise, 1922: 19
Type species: Ectonia laeta Weise, 1922, by monotypy.
Asialtica Scherer, 1969: 123 (synonymized by Konstantinov & Lingafelter, 2002)
Type species: Aphthona indica Jacoby, 1900, by original designation.
Ethiopia Scherer, 1972: 7 (synonymized by Biondi & D'Alessandro, 2012)
Type species: Ethiopia tricolor Scherer, 1972, by original designation.
Bhutajana Scherer, 1979: 132  (synonymized by Konstantinov & Prathapan, 2008)
Type species: Bhutajana metallica Scherer, 1979
Aphthonotarsa Medvedev, 1984: 55 (synonymized by Konstantinov & Lingafelter, 2002)
Type species: Aphthonotarsa brunnea Medvedev, 1984, by original designation.

References
Primary references

Biondi, M. & D'Alessandro, P. 2010. Genus-group names of Afrotropical flea beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Alticinae): Annotated catalogue and biogeographical notes. European Journal of Entomology 107: 401–424. DOI: 10.14411/eje.2010.049 Open access. Reference page.
Biondi, M. & D'Alessandro, P. 2012. Afrotropical flea beetle genera: a key to their identification, updated catalogue and biogeographical analysis (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini). ZooKeys 253: 1–158. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.253.3414 Open access. Reference page.
Chevrolat, L.A.A. 1836. [new taxa]. In: Dejean, P.F.M.A. Catalogue des Coléoptères de la collection de M. le comte Dejean. Deuxième édition. [Livraison 5]. Paris: Méquignon-Marvis Père et Fils. pp. 361–443. BHL. Reference page.
Jacoby, M. 1899. Some new genera and species of Phytophagous Coleoptera collected during Captain Bottego's last expedition. Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Genova. Series 2. 39: 521–535. BHL.
Konstantinov, A.S. & Lingafelter, S.W. 2002. Revision of the oriental species of Aphthona Chevrolat (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Miscellaneous Publications of the Entomological Society of America: 1–349. Abstract and Introduction (PDF). Reference page.
Konstantinov, A.S. & Prathapan, K.D. 2008. New generic synonyms in the Oriental flea beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). The Coleopterists Bulletin 62(3): 381-418. DOI: 10.1649/1089.1 Paywall. JSTOR Hybrid open access journal. PDF. Reference page.
Scherer, G. 1969. Die Alticinae des Indischen Subkontinentes (Coleoptera – Chrysomelidae). Pacific Insects Monograph 22: 1–251. PDF.

Additional references

Biondi, M., Urbani, F. & D'Alessandro, P. 2013. Revision of the Aphthona cookei species group in sub-Saharan Africa: pests of Jatropha curcas L. in biodiesel plantations (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Galerucinae, Alticini). Entomologia 1(1): e7. DOI: 10.4081/entomologia.2013.e7 Open access. Reference page.
Döberl, M. 2010. Subfamily Alticinae Newman, 1835. Pp. 491–563. In: Löbl, I. & Smetana, A. (eds.) Catalogue of Palaearctic Coleoptera. Volume 6. Chrysomeloidea. Apollo Books, Stenstrup, Denmark. 924 pp. ISBN 978-87-88757-84-2. Google Books.
Medvedev, L.N. 2008. New species of Chrysomelidae (Coleoptera) from Sulawesi. Entomologica Basiliensia et Collections Frey 30: 243–261. Reference page. [not seen]
Prathapan, K.D. & Konstantinov, A.S. 2011. A New Species-group in Aphthona Chevrolat (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) with a Description of a New Species from Southern India. The Coleopterists Bulletin 65(4): 329–334. DOI: 10.1649/072.065.0401 Paywall. JSTOR Hybrid open access journal. ResearchGate Open access. Reference page.
Romantsov, P.V. 2021. К познанию фауны жуков-листоедов (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) Восточной Сибири и юга Дальнего Востока России [On the Knowledge of the Leaf-Beetle Fauna (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) of Siberia and the Russian Far East]. Entomologicheskoe Obozrenie 100(1): 153–180. (in Russian). DOI: 10.31857/S036714452101010X Paywall. PDF/HTML (sciencejournals.ru) Open access. [English transl.: Entmological Review 101(1): 97–120. DOI: 10.1134/S0013873821010073 Paywall.] Reference page.
Takizawa, H. 2017. Leaf beetles of Mt. Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Japanese Journal of Systematic Entomology 23(2): 195–233. Abstract (Facebook). Reference page.

Links

Subfamily Alticinae (Chrysomelidae) - atlas of leaf beetles of Russia
The Handbook of Palearctic Flea Beetles - identification of Palearctic flea beetle genera, along with morphology, host plant information, and literature references

Aphthona is a genus of beetle, in the leaf beetle family Chrysomelidae, native to Europe and Asia. More specifically, Aphthona are flea beetles, meaning they have enlarged hind legs for jumping away from potential danger. There are some 300 species known worldwide.[2]

This flea beetle genus is important because of the usefulness of some species in controlling leafy spurge, a major invasive weed in parts of western North America. Several Aphthona species have been taken from Europe and introduced into localized areas of the United States and Canada, and some success against the weed is being seen.[3][4] The six species used for this purpose include A. abdominalis, A. cyparissiae, A. czwalinae, A. flava, A. nigriscutis, and A. lacertosa, though A. abdominalis apparently never established a viable population and was never introduced in Canada.[5][6][7]

Effectiveness of Control

Control is generally thought to be effective, but results vary from site to site, which has been attributed to soilborne pathogens, phenology of spring, soil texture, and leafy spurge density. Control is less effective in sandy soils.[8] Control may not be reliably observed and measured for 10 years or more.
Selected species
A. nonstriata

Aphthona abdominalis
Aphthona aeneomicans
Aphthona albertinae
Aphthona alcina
Aphthona atrocaerulea
Aphthona atrovirens
Aphthona beauprei
Aphthona beckeri
Aphthona biokovensis
Aphthona bonvouloiri
Aphthona carbonaria
Aphthona chinchihi
Aphthona coerulea
Aphthona constantini
Aphthona crassipes
Aphthona cyparissiae
Aphthona czwalinae
Aphthona delicatula
Aphthona depressa
Aphthona erichsoni
Aphthona espagnoli
Aphthona euphorbiae
Aphthona flava
Aphthona flaviceps
Aphthona franzi
Aphthona fuentei
Aphthona gracilis
Aphthona herbigrada
Aphthona illigeri
Aphthona juliana
Aphthona konstantinovi
Aphthona kuntzei
Aphthona lacertosa
Aphthona lubischevi
Aphthona lutescens
Aphthona maculata

Aphthona maghrebina
Aphthona maldesi
Aphthona melancholica
Aphthona microcephala
Aphthona nigriceps
Aphthona nigriscutis
Aphthona nonstriata
Aphthona occitana
Aphthona ovata
Aphthona pallida
Aphthona parnassicola
Aphthona perrisi
Aphthona placida
Aphthona plenifrons
Aphthona poupillieri
Aphthona punctiventris
Aphthona pygmaea
Aphthona reitteri
Aphthona rhodiensis
Aphthona rugipennis
Aphthona sardea
Aphthona sarmatica
Aphthona semicyanea
Aphthona seriata
Aphthona sicelidis
Aphthona signatifrons
Aphthona stussineri
Aphthona subovata
Aphthona syriaca
Aphthona testaceicornis
Aphthona velachica
Aphthona variolosa
Aphthona vaulogeri
Aphthona venustula
Aphthona violacea
Aphthona wagneri

References

Andris Bukejs. "To the knowledge of flea beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Alticinae) of the Latvian fauna. 4. Genus Aphthona Chevrolat, 1836" (PDF). Acta Zoologica Lituanica, 2009, Volumen 19, Numerus 3.[permanent dead link]
https://www.zin.ru/animalia/coleoptera/addpages/Nadein/Aphthona.htm
Hodur, N.M., Leistritz, F.L., Bangsund, D.A., 2006. Biological control of leafy spurge: utilization and implementation. Range land Ecology & Management 59, 445–452.
Diane L. Larson; James B. Grace; Jennifer L. Larson. "Long-term dynamics of leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula) and its biocontrol agent, flea beetles in the genus Aphthona". Biological Control 47 (2008) 250–256.
R. Roehrdanz; D. Olson; G. Fauske; R. Bourchier; A. Cortilet; S. Sears. "New DNA markers reveal presence of Aphthona species (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) believed to have failed to establish after release into leafy spurge" (PDF). Biological Control 49 (2009) 1–5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-21.
Anon (2006). "Ecology and management of leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula L.)" (PDF). United States Department of Agriculture. Natural Resources Conservation Service, Invasive Species Technical Note No. MT-2.
Bourchier, R.S., Erb, S., McClay, A.S., Gassmann, A., 2002. Euphorbia esula (L.) leafy spurge and Euphorbia cyparissias (L.) cypress spurge (Euphorbiaceae). In: Mason, P., Huber, J. (Eds.), Biological Control Programmes Against Insect and Weeds in Canada 1981–2000. Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux, Slough, UK, pp. 346–358.
Laurie A. Richardson; Chelsea J. Juricek; Rodney G. Lym; Donald R. Kirby; Dwight A. Tober. "Integrated Leafy Spurge (Euphorbia esula) Control Using Imazapic, Aphthona spp. Biological Control Agents, and Seeded Native Grasses" (PDF). Invasive Plant Science and Management 2008 1:255–264. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-04-09.