Chaetocnema rileyi

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Chaetocnema rileyi
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Chrysomelidae
Genus: Chaetocnema
Species:
C. rileyi
Binomial name
Chaetocnema rileyi
R. White, 1996

Chaetocnema rileyi, the Boca Chica flea beetle, is a species of flea beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. [1] [2] [3] [4] It is known to be found only in a dune system at Boca Chica Beach, in Boca Chica, Texas, United States. [1] [2] [5] The beetles inhabit the stems of sedges in the beachside dunes, while the larvae are subterranean and feed on the underground portions of their host plants. [6]

Contents

Conservation

The Boca Chica flea beetle is designated as a species of great conservation need (SGCN) by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). [7] Spacecraft company SpaceX operates its Starbase spaceport and production facility for Starship rockets nearby, and environmental groups have warned that noise pollution and debris from launches threaten wildlife, including this rare flea beetle. [8] In 2022, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) finalized their environmental assessment for the Starship program, and found that Boca Chica flea beetles close to the launchpad could be killed by exposure to high temperatures from engine plumes. In the event of a possible launch anomaly, debris or debris clean-up could impact dune vegetation where the beetle inhabits. [6] SpaceX would later coordinate with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to reduce the environmental impact made from activities at Starbase, and would also conduct an environmental review in partnership with them before Starship's second integrated flight test. [9]

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Boca Chica is an area on the eastern portion of a subdelta peninsula of Cameron County, at the far south of the US State of Texas along the Gulf Coast. It is bordered by the Brownsville Ship Channel to the north, the Rio Grande and Mexico to the south, and the Gulf of Mexico to the east. The area extends about 25 miles (40 km) east of the city of Brownsville. The peninsula is served by Texas State Highway 4—also known as the Boca Chica Highway, or Boca Chica Boulevard within Brownsville city limits—which runs east–west, terminating at the Gulf and Boca Chica Beach.

References

  1. 1 2 "Chaetocnema rileyi Species Information". BugGuide.net. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  2. 1 2 "Chaetocnema rileyi". Integrated Taxonomic Information System . Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  3. "Chaetocnema rileyi Overview". Encyclopedia of Life. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  4. "Chaetocnema rileyi species details". Catalogue of Life. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  5. "North American Cryptocephalus species (Chrysomelidae, Cryptocephalinae)". Texas Entomology. Retrieved 2018-03-04.
  6. 1 2 "Final Programmatic Environmental Assessment for the SpaceX Starship/Super Heavy Launch Vehicle Program at the SpaceX Boca Chica Launch Site in Cameron County, Texas" (PDF). FAA. June 2022. pp. 130, 143–144. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  7. "Section II" (PDF). Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPWD). 2005-11-10. pp. 57, 81. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  8. Moreno, Gaby (2021-04-06). "Public responds to SpaceX debris from SN11, still scattered across Boca Chica". KXAN Austin. Retrieved 2024-04-27.
  9. Robinson-Smith, Will (2023-10-31). "FAA concludes SpaceX Starship safety review, continues environmental review". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 2024-04-28.

Further reading