''Chnootriba elaterii'' (formerly ''Henosepilachna elaterii''), the melon ladybird beetle,Tomaszewska, W., & Szawaryn, K. (2016). Epilachnini (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)-A Revision of the World Genera. Journal of insect science (Online), 16(1), 101. doi:10.1093/jisesa/iew082 is a

phytophagous A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet (nutrition), diet. These more broadly also encompass an ...

ladybird Coccinellidae () is a widespread family of small beetles. They are commonly known as ladybugs in North America and ladybirds in the United Kingdom; "lady" refers to mother Mary. Entomologists use the names ladybird beetles or lady beetles ...

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

found in

southern Europe Southern Europe is also known as Mediterranean Europe, as its geography is marked by the Mediterranean Sea. Definitions of southern Europe include some or all of these countries and regions: Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, C ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

and

western Asia West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenian ...

. It feeds mainly on

squirting cucumber ''Ecballium'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cucurbitaceae containing a single species, ''Ecballium elaterium'', also called the squirting cucumber, as well as the noli me tangere and its English translation touch-me-not. Its unus ...

, but also on other cultivated or spontaneous

Cucurbitaceae The Cucurbitaceae (), also called cucurbits or the gourd family, are a plant family (biology), family consisting of about 965 species in 101 genera.

plants.

References

Coccinellidae Beetles of Europe Beetles described in 1794 {{Coccinellidae-stub