''Nisotra'' is a genus of

flea beetle The flea beetle is any small, jumping beetle of the leaf beetle family (Chrysomelidae) that is part of the tribe (biology), tribe Alticini, which is part of the subfamily Galerucinae. Historically the flea beetles were classified as their own ...

s in the family

Chrysomelidae 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 ...

. 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.

Description

''Nisotra'' can be recognised by: a thickset and distinctly convex body; the

pronotum The prothorax is the foremost of the three segments in the thorax of an insect, and bears the first pair of legs. Its principal sclerites (exoskeletal plates) are the pronotum (dorsal), the prosternum (ventral), and the propleuron (lateral) on e ...

as wide of the

elytra An elytron (; ; : elytra, ) is a modified, hardened forewing of beetles (Coleoptera), though a few of the true bugs (Hemiptera) such as the family Schizopteridae are extremely similar; in true bugs, the forewings are called hemelytra (sometime ...

basally; the pronotum anterior margin with two longitudinal groove-like impressions, often deeply impressed and sometimes reaching middle of pronotum.

Diet

''Nisotra'' feed on plants in the families

Malvaceae Malvaceae (), or the mallows, is a family of flowering plants estimated to contain 244 genera with 4225 known species. Well-known members of economic importance include Theobroma cacao, cacao, Cola (plant), cola, cotton, okra, Hibiscus sabdariffa, ...

Bombacaceae Bombacaceae were long recognised as a family of flowering plants or Angiospermae. The family name was based on the type genus '' Bombax''. As is true for many botanical names, circumscription and status of the taxon has varied with taxonomic poi ...

Tiliaceae Tiliaceae () is a family of flowering plants. It is not a part of the APG, APG II and APG III classifications, being sunk in Malvaceae mostly as the subfamilies Tilioideae, Brownlowioideae and Grewioideae, but has an extensive historical re ...

Fabaceae Fabaceae () or Leguminosae,International Code of Nomen ...

Rosaceae Rosaceae (), the rose family, is a family of flowering plants that includes 4,828 known species in 91 genera. The name is derived from the type genus '' Rosa''. The family includes herbs, shrubs, and trees. Most species are deciduous, but som ...

Asteraceae Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchi ...

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family (biology), family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle, or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil (herb), ba ...

Rubiaceae Rubiaceae () is a family (biology), family of flowering plants, commonly known as the coffee, madder, or bedstraw family. It consists of terrestrial trees, shrubs, lianas, or herbs that are recognizable by simple, opposite leaves with Petiole ( ...

Poaceae Poaceae ( ), also called Gramineae ( ), is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos, the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivate ...

and

Orchidaceae Orchids are plants that belong to the family (biology), family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan plants that ...

. Larvae feed on roots (boring in stems has also been reported), while adults feed on leaves.

Pests

In the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...

, ''N. basselae'' is a pest on bele (''

Abelmoschus manihot ''Abelmoschus manihot'', commonly known as aibika, is a flowering plant in the family Malvaceae. It is a tropical subshrub or shrub native to the Indian subcontinent, Indochina, central and southern China, Malesia, New Guinea, and Queensland. It ...

''). Its impact is so severe that bele is no longer grown in many places on the islands. '' Nisotra chrysomeloides'' is a pest on

okra Okra (, ), ''Abelmoschus esculentus'', known in some English-speaking countries as lady's fingers, is a flowering plant in the Malvaceae, mallow family native to East Africa. Cultivated in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions aro ...

(''Abelmoschus esculentus''). Its abundance varies depending on temperature, relative humidity and rainfall. Another okra pest is ''

Nisotra sjostedti ''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 specie ...

''.

Species

These species, among others, belong to the genus ''Nisotra'': * ''

Nisotra apicalis ''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 specie ...

'' Jacoby 1899 * ''

Nisotra aruwimiana ''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 specie ...

'' Weise * ''

Nisotra basselae ''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 specie ...

'' (Bryant) * ''

Nisotra bicolorata ''Nisotra bicolorata'' is a species of flea beetle in the family Chrysomelidae found in Australia. Coleopterologist Ernő Csíki discovered and first described the beetle in 1940. As the scientific name suggests, ''N. bicolarata'' is two-colored, ...

'' Csiki, 1940 * ''

Nisotra breweri ''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 specie ...

'' Baly, 1877 * ''

Nisotra brunnea ''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 specie ...

'' Jacoby 1894 * ''

Nisotra ceylonensis ''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 specie ...

'' Jacoby 1899 * ''

Nisotra chapuisi ''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 specie ...

'' Jacoby 1876 * '' Nisotra chrysomeloides'' Jacoby 1885 * ''

Nisotra dilecta ''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 specie ...

'' (Dalman, 1823) * ''

Nisotra dohertyi ''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 specie ...

'' Maulik, 1926 * ''

Nisotra fulva ''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 specie ...

'' (Medvedev, 2018) * '' Nisotra gemella'' (Erichson, 1834) * '' Nisotra goudoti'' Harold, 1875 * '' Nisotra insulana'' Medvedev, 2008 * '' Nisotra javana'' Motschulsky, 1866 * '' Nisotra javanica'' * '' Nisotra klugii'' Jacoby 1892 * '' Nisotra lineella'' Weise, 1916 * ''

Nisotra madagascariensis ''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 specie ...

'' Jacoby 1901 * '' Nisotra madurensis'' Jacoby, 1896 * '' Nisotra malayana'' Medvedev, 2016 * '' Nisotra mera'' Weise, 1916 * '' Nisotra nigripennis'' Jacoby 1903 * '' Nisotra nigripes'' Jacoby 1894 * '' Nisotra obliterata'' Jacoby * '' Nisotra oneili'' Jacoby 1906 * '' Nisotra orbiculata'' Motschulsky, 1866 * '' Nisotra pallida'' Jacoby, 1898 * '' Nisotra semicoerulea'' Jacoby 1903 * ''

'' Jacoby 1903 * '' Nisotra sordida'' Weise, 1916 * '' Nisotra spadicea'' (Dalman, 1823) * '' Nisotra striatipennis'' Jacoby * '' Nisotra submetallica'' Blackburn, 1894 * '' Nisotra terminata'' Jacoby 1894 * '' Nisotra theobromae'' Laboissiere, 1920 * '' Nisotra uniformis'' Jacoby 1906 * '' Nisotra xinjiangana'' Zhang & Yang, 2007

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q46791534 Alticini Chrysomelidae genera Taxa named by Joseph Sugar Baly