The flea beetle is a small, jumping beetle of the leaf beetle family (Chrysomelidae), that makes up the tribe Alticini which is part of the subfamily Galerucinae. Historically the flea beetles were classified as their own subfamily.
The Galerucinae are a large subfamily of the leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae), containing about 15,000 species in more than 1000 genera, of which about 500 genera and about 8000 species make up the flea beetle tribe Alticini.
Catherine N. Duckett is the Associate Dean of the School of Science at Monmouth University. Formerly she worked as Associate Director of the Office for the Promotion of Women in Science, Engineering and Mathematics, and the Program Manager of the Ocean Biogeographic Information System at Rutgers University, as well as a former Associate professor of Biology at University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras. She is also a prominent systematic entomologist, specializing in the phylogeny of flea beetles, and an adjunct professor at Rutgers.
Altica is a large genus of flea beetles in the subfamily Galerucinae, with about 300 species, distributed nearly worldwide. The genus is best represented in the Neotropical realm, well represented in the Nearctic and Palearctic, but occurs also in the Afrotropic, Indomalaya, and Australasia. The species are similar to each other, small metallic blue-green-bronze beetles, often distinguished from each other only by the aedeagus. The species of Altica, both as larvae and as adults, are phytophagous, feeding on plant foliage of various food plant taxa, specific for each Altica species. Onagraceae and Rosaceae are the dominant host plant families for Holarctic species. The adult Altica beetles are able to jump away when approached.
Chaetocnema is a genus of flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. There are some 470 described species worldwide.
Blepharida rhois, also known as the sumac flea beetle, is a species of leaf beetle of the subfamily Galerucinae. The colour of the species is red, with white dots and yellow head. They feed on a variety of plants, primarily in the Anacardiaceae, but are most closely associated with Sumac. They are 6 millimetres (0.24 in) in length.
Pyrrhalta is a genus of beetles in the leaf beetle family, Chrysomelidae. Species are distributed throughout much of the world, including much of the Northern Hemisphere and the Australian region.
Tricholochmaea is a genus of skeletonizing leaf beetles and flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. There are 21 described species and two subspecies of Tricholochmaea. It is treated as a synonym of Pyrrhalta by some authors, but not by others.
Epitrix fasciata, the banded epitrix, is a species of flea beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in the Caribbean, Central America, North America, Oceania, and South America.
Systena marginalis, the margined systena, is a species of flea beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in North America.
Phyllotreta undulata, known generally as the small striped flea beetle or turnip flea beetle, is a species of flea beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in Australia, Europe and Northern Asia, North America, and Oceania.
Argopistes is a genus of flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. There are about 50 described species in Argopistes. They are found worldwide.
Aulacothorax is a genus of flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. There are at least 20 described species in Aulacothorax, found in the Palearctic, North America, Indomalaya, and Australasia.
Systena hudsonias, the black-headed flea beetle, is a species of flea beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in North America. It is poliphagos, it feeds on plants of seventeen different plant families.
Asphaera is a genus of flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae, containing some 130 species, found in North America, Central America, and the Neotropics.
Monocesta is a genus of skeletonizing leaf beetles and flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. There are at least three described species in Monocesta.
Podontia is a genus of flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. They belong in the Blepharida-group of flea beetles.
Cacoscelis is a genus of flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae, found in southern North America, Central America, and South America.
Nisotra is a genus of flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. They are found in Africa, Asia, and Australia. There are around 90 described species in Nisotra, including about 70 in Sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar. Many of these species are agricultural pests.
