''Eucolaspis'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
leaf beetle
The beetle family Chrysomelidae, commonly known as leaf beetles, includes over 37,000 (and probably at least 50,000) species in more than 2,500 genera, making it one of the largest and most commonly encountered of all beetle families. Numerous s ...
s in the subfamily
Eumolpinae
The Eumolpinae are a subfamily of the leaf beetles, or Chrysomelidae. It is one of the largest subfamilies of leaf beetles, including more than 500 genera and 7000 species. They are oval, and convex in form, and measure up to 10 mm in size. ...
. It is native to
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
, where it is a serious pest of apple trees and other fruit crops.
The genus has also been reported from
Fiji
Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...
.
Taxonomy
The taxonomy of the genus is generally considered to be unresolved, as it is ambiguous how many species the genus contains.
Fifteen species were described from New Zealand by
Fabricius Fabricius (, ) is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*people from the Ancient Roman Fabricia gens, gens Fabricia:
**Gaius Fabricius Luscinus, the first of the Fabricii to move to Rome
* Johann Goldsmid (1587–1616), known by his ...
(1781),
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
(1846) and
Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
(1880, 1893, 1909). In 1957, Shaw revised the genus, reducing the number of species in New Zealand to five (including two newly described species of his own).
However, later entomologists ignored Shaw's synonymy.
In the same year, two species of the genus were described from Fiji by Bryant and
Gressitt.
In 2015, using morphological and genetic evidence, several researchers proposed instead just three lineages (or putative species) of the genus in the mainland of New Zealand, using the names "''Eucolaspis puncticollis''", "''Eucolaspis picticornis''" and "''Eucolaspis jucunda''".
However, in 2019, Spanish entomologist Jesús Gómez-Zurita analysed the diversity and distribution of the genus, and his observations generally agreed with the conclusions of Shaw's 1957 revision, identifying at least five species of ''Eucolaspis'' in New Zealand. In addition, he described a new species, ''
Eucolaspis kotatou'', from Te Paki, near
Cape Reinga
Cape Reinga / Te Rerenga Wairua (; sometimes spelled Rēinga, ) is the northwestern most tip of the Aupōuri Peninsula, at the northern end of the North Island of New Zealand. Cape Reinga is more than 100 km north of the nearest small town ...
.
Species
New Zealand species, according to Shaw (1957)
and Gómez-Zurita (2019):
* ''
Eucolaspis antennata''
Shaw, 1957
* ''
Eucolaspis brunnea''
(Fabricius Fabricius (, ) is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
*people from the Ancient Roman Fabricia gens, gens Fabricia:
**Gaius Fabricius Luscinus, the first of the Fabricii to move to Rome
* Johann Goldsmid (1587–1616), known by his ...
, 1781) (synonyms: ''E. brevicollis''
(Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1880); ''E. ochracea''
Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1893; ''E. colorata''
Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1893; ''E. vittiger''
Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1893; ''E. picticornis''
Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1893)
* ''
Eucolaspis hudsoni''
Shaw, 1957
* ''
Eucolaspis jucunda''
(Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1880) (synonyms: ''E. subaenea''
(Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1880); ''E. mera''
(Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1880); ''E. atrocerulea''
(Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1880))
* ''
Eucolaspis kotatou''
Gómez-Zurita, 2019
* ''
Eucolaspis pallidipennis''
(White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 1846) (synonyms: ''E. puncticollis''
(Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1880); ''E. sculpta''
(Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1880); ''E. montana''
Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1893; ''E. plicatus''
Broun Broun is a surname. It is the Middle English and Scots spelling of Brown. Notable people with the surname include:
*Agnes Broun (1732–1820), mother of Scottish poet Robert Burns
* Alex Broun (born 1965), Australian playwright and screenwriter
*D ...
, 1909)
Fiji species, according to Bryant & Gressitt (1957):
* ''
Eucolaspis castanea''
Bryant, 1957
* ''
Eucolaspis saltator''
Gressitt, 1957
References
Eumolpinae
Chrysomelidae genera
Beetles of New Zealand
Insects of Fiji
{{Eumolpinae-stub