| Paropsis charybdis | |
|---|---|
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| Adult | |
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| Larva | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Family: | Chrysomelidae |
| Genus: | Paropsis |
| Species: | P. charybdis |
| Binomial name | |
| Paropsis charybdis Stål, 1860 | |
Paropsis charybdis, commonly known as the Eucalyptus tortoise beetle, is a species of leaf beetle belonging to the genus Paropsis . It is considered a pest of some species of Eucalyptus . [1]
Paropsis charybdis is identified by its pale creamy-white elytra upon which are three broad transverse areas of darker colouration. The under surface is yellow-brown. [2]
Paropsis charybdis is native to Australia, but has spread to nearby New Zealand. [3]
The parasitoid wasps Ennogera nassaui and Eadya paropsidis have been used as a biological control agent for P. charybdis. [1] [3]
Paropsis charybdis is the most serious defoliater of eucalyptus in New Zealand and is particularly associated with the subgenus Symphyomyrtus . [1] The most severely attacked species include: E. globulus , E. viminalis , E. johnstonii , E. smithii , E. grandis , E. deanei , E. guilfoylei , E. macarthurii , E. longifolia , and E. quadrangulata . [1]
Eucalyptus is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including Corymbia, they are commonly known as eucalypts. Plants in the genus Eucalyptus have bark that is either smooth, fibrous, hard or stringy, leaves with oil glands, and sepals and petals that are fused to form a "cap" or operculum over the stamens. The fruit is a woody capsule commonly referred to as a "gumnut".
Eucalyptus regnans, known variously as mountain ash, swamp gum, or stringy gum, is a species of medium-sized to very tall forest tree that is native to the Australia states of Tasmania and Victoria. It is a straight-trunked tree with smooth grey bark, but with a stocking of rough brown bark at the base, glossy green, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of between nine and fifteen, white flowers, and cup-shaped or conical fruit. It is the tallest of all flowering plants; the tallest measured living specimen, named Centurion, stands 102 metres tall in Tasmania.
Metrosideros is a genus of approximately 60 trees, shrubs, and vines mostly found in the Pacific region in the family Myrtaceae. Most of the tree forms are small, but some are exceptionally large, the New Zealand species in particular. The name derives from the Ancient Greek metra or "heartwood" and sideron or "iron". Perhaps the best-known species are the pōhutukawa, northern and southern rātā of New Zealand, and ʻōhiʻa lehua, from the Hawaiian Islands.
The Aldabra giant tortoise is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is endemic to the Seychelles, with the nominate subspecies, A. g. gigantea native to Aldabra atoll. It is one of the largest tortoises in the world. Historically, giant tortoises were found on many of the western Indian Ocean islands, as well as Madagascar, and the fossil record indicates giant tortoises once occurred on every continent and many islands with the exception of Australia and Antarctica.
Island gigantism, or insular gigantism, is a biological phenomenon in which the size of an animal species isolated on an island increases dramatically in comparison to its mainland relatives. Island gigantism is one aspect of the more general "island effect" or "Foster's rule", which posits that when mainland animals colonize islands, small species tend to evolve larger bodies, and large species tend to evolve smaller bodies. This is itself one aspect of the more general phenomenon of island syndrome which describes the differences in morphology, ecology, physiology and behaviour of insular species compared to their continental counterparts. Following the arrival of humans and associated introduced predators, many giant as well as other island endemics have become extinct. A similar size increase, as well as increased woodiness, has been observed in some insular plants.
The family Archeocrypticidae is a small group of beetles with no vernacular common name, though recent authors have coined the name cryptic fungus beetles. Adults and larvae seems to be saprophagous and are often found in plant litter. Worldwide, about 10 genera and 50 species are found, most species are pantropical. Enneboeus caseyi has been recorded from the American South, Central America, and Mexico. About 20 species are found in Australia, in the genera Enneboeus,Australenneboeus and Gondwanenneboeus,Archeocrypticus,Falsoplatydema, Nothenneboeus, Sivacrypticus and Wattianus. They are largely absent from the Palearctic and Nearctic regions.
The Pergidae are a moderate-sized family of sawflies occurring in the Western Hemisphere and the Australasian Region. The Pergidae are, with almost 450 described species, the third-largest family of Symphyta after the Tenthredinidae and the Argidae. Morphologically, most pergids are typically sawfly-like, but the form of the antennae varies considerably in number of segments and from simple to serrate and pectinate or even bipectinate. Sexual dimorphism is common and reflected in differences in type of antennae, colour, and size. Included are some of the few known apterous sawflies, those of the genus Cladomacra occurring in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, and a species with brachypterous females, Clarissa tasbates, in Tasmania.
Charybdis is a genus of swimming crabs in the family Portunidae; "Charybdis" is Greek for whirlpool.
Eucalyptus obliqua, commonly known as messmate stringybark or messmate, but also known as brown top, brown top stringbark, stringybark or Tasmanian oak, is a species of tree that is endemic to south-eastern Australia. It has rough, stringy or fibrous bark on the trunk and larger branches, smooth greyish bark on the thinnest branches, lance-shaped to curved adult leaves, flower buds in groups of seven to fifteen or more, white flowers and cup-shaped or barrel-shaped fruit.
The Chrysomelinae are a subfamily of leaf beetles (Chrysomelidae), commonly known as broad-bodied leaf beetles or broad-shouldered leaf beetles. It includes some 3,000 species around the world.
Paropsis is a genus of Chrysomelidae, commonly referred to as tortoise beetles, which includes over 70 described species. Their small size, bright colours and patterns, and roughly hemispherical shape cause them to be mistaken for beetles in the family Coccinellidae (ladybirds). They are distributed across Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. They primarily feed on Eucalyptus but there are a few that feed on Baeckea, Kunzea and Leptospermum. Species within this genus are noted as pests. For example, Paropsis charybdis is a pest of Eucalyptus in New Zealand.
The thistle tortoise beetle is a species of leaf beetle, situated in the subfamily Cassidinae and the genus Cassida.
Jacobsoniidae are a family of tiny beetles belonging to Staphylinoidea. The larvae and adults live under bark, in plant litter, fungi, bat guano and rotten wood. There are around 28 described species in three genera:
Trigonospila brevifacies is a species of true fly in the family Tachinidae native to eastern Australia. This species is also found in New Zealand. Like the vast majority of tachinid flies, T. brevifacies is a parasitoid of other insects, specifically late larval stages of a number of species of Lepidoptera. It is also known as the Australian Leaf-Roller Fly or Leafroller Fly.
Paropsisterna is a genus of leaf beetles indigenous to Papua New Guinea and Australia. There are over 120 species, many with bright aposematic colours, and many feeding on Eucalyptus leaves.
Eucalyptus occidentalis, commonly known as the flat topped yate or the swamp yate, is a tree that is native to Western Australia. The Noongar names for the tree are Mo or Yundill.
Charybdis hellerii, the Indo-Pacific swimming crab or spiny hands is a species of crab from the swimming crab family, the Portunidae. Its native range covers the Indian and Pacific Oceans but it has been introduced to the western Atlantic and has invaded the Mediterranean. It is a commercially exploited species in south-east Asia.
Trachymela sloanei, known generally as the Australian tortoise beetle or small eucalyptus tortoise beetle, is a species of leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae.
Enoggera is a genus of wasp in the Pteromalidae family. It is native to Australia and has five known species. It was introduced to South Africa to serve as biological pest-control against the Eucalyptus destroying beetle, Trachymela tincticollis.
Paropsisterna beata, commonly known as the blessed leaf beetle, is a species of leaf beetle. It occurs in all states of Australia except Tasmania.
