:Rhizobius'' is a genus in the

fungi A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one ...

kingdom (see Disease resistance in fruit and vegetables), as well as an obsolete name for the aphid genus ''

Pemphigus Pemphigus ( or ) is a rare group of blistering autoimmune diseases that affect the skin and mucous membranes. The name is derived from the Greek root ''pemphix'', meaning "blister". In pemphigus, autoantibody, autoantibodies form against de ...

. ''Rhyzobius'' 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 ...

in the

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

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

(Coccinellidae). It belongs to

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

Coccidulini of

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Coccidulinae The Coccidulinae are a subfamily of Coccinellidae, lady beetles in the family Coccinellidae.Species:Coccidulinae Recent molecular analyses suggest that Coccidulinae is not a monophyletic group (e.g., the tribe Novius (beetle), Noviini may belong ...

, which is sometimes subsumed in the

Coccinellinae Coccinellinae is a subfamily of lady beetles in the family Coccinellidae. There are at least 20 genera and 90 described species in Coccinellinae. Genera Coccinellinae includes these genera: * ''Adalia (beetle), Adalia'' Mulsant, 1846 * ''Aioloc ...

as a tribe with the Coccidulini downranked to subtribe. The genus was established by J.F. Stephens in 1832. Often misspelled as ''"Rhizobius"'', that is actually an older name, now suppressed, for a genus of

wooly aphid Woolly aphids (subfamily: Eriosomatinae) are sap-sucking insects that produce a filamentous waxy white covering which resembles cotton or wool. The adults are winged and move to new locations where they lay egg masses. The nymphs often form ...

s. The misspelling was first made in the original description in 1832; however, Stephens had used the name in 1829 already (as ''

nomen nudum In Taxonomy (biology), taxonomy, a ''nomen nudum'' ('naked name'; plural ''nomina nuda'') is a designation which looks exactly like a scientific name of an organism, and may have originally been intended to be one, but it has not been published ...

'') and written it "Rhyzobius", so this spelling is used now.

Louis Agassiz Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz ( ; ) FRS (For) FRSE (May 28, 1807 – December 14, 1873) was a Swiss-born American biologist and geologist who is recognized as a scholar of Earth's natural history. Spending his early life in Switzerland, he recei ...

in 1846 argued that Stephens intended to write "Rhizobius" all along and formally proposed to change the name thus, but this is considered unwarranted.

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), ...

of ''Rhyzobius'' can be found almost anywhere on Earth. ''

Rhyzobius lophanthae ''Rhyzobius lophanthae'', commonly known as the purple scale predator or the scale-eating ladybird, is a species of ladybird native to Queensland and Southern Australia. It was introduced into the United States in the 1890s and has since spread o ...

'' is used for

biological pest control Biological control or biocontrol is a method of controlling pests, whether pest animals such as insects and mites, weeds, or pathogens affecting animals or plants by using other organisms. It relies on predation, parasitism, herbivory, or ot ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, namely

scale insect Scale insects are small insects of the Order (biology), order Hemiptera, suborder Sternorrhyncha. Of dramatically variable appearance and extreme sexual dimorphism, they comprise the infraorder Coccomorpha which is considered a more convenient g ...

s (Coccoidea).

Species

106 species are recognised in the most recent worldwide revision, including:Tomaszewska, W. 2010: ''Rhyzobius'' Stephens, 1829 (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), a revision of the world species. ''Fauna mundi'', 2 ISSN 2081-4615 * ''

Rhyzobius bassus :Rhizobius'' is a genus in the fungi kingdom (see Disease resistance in fruit and vegetables), as well as an obsolete name for the aphid genus ''Pemphigus. ''Rhyzobius'' is a genus in the lady beetle family (Coccinellidae). It belongs to tribe C ...

'' Normand, 1938^g * ''

Rhyzobius bielawskii :Rhizobius'' is a genus in the fungi kingdom (see Disease resistance in fruit and vegetables), as well as an obsolete name for the aphid genus ''Pemphigus. ''Rhyzobius'' is a genus in the lady beetle family (Coccinellidae). It belongs to tribe C ...

'' Tomaszewska, 2010^g * ''

Rhyzobius bipartitus :Rhizobius'' is a genus in the fungi kingdom (see Disease resistance in fruit and vegetables), as well as an obsolete name for the aphid genus ''Pemphigus. ''Rhyzobius'' is a genus in the lady beetle family (Coccinellidae). It belongs to tribe C ...

'' Fuente, 1918^g * '' Rhyzobius chrysomeloides'' (Herbst, 1792)^g * ''

Rhyzobius fagus :Rhizobius'' is a genus in the fungi kingdom (see Disease resistance in fruit and vegetables), as well as an obsolete name for the aphid genus ''Pemphigus. ''Rhyzobius'' is a genus in the lady beetle family (Coccinellidae). It belongs to tribe C ...

'' (Broun, 1880)^g * ''

Rhyzobius forestieri ''Rhyzobius forestieri'' is a species of lady beetle in the family Coccinellidae. It is found in Australia, North America, Oceania, and Europe. The species is thought to be originally from Australia and recently introduced to parts of Europe in t ...

'' (Mulsant, 1853)^{i c g b} * ''

Rhyzobius litura ''Rhyzobius litura'' is a species of beetle in family Coccinellidae. It is found in the Palearctic It is mainly found in Western Europe, especially in the United Kingdom In the southeast, the area spreads to Bulgaria and Greece.Fauna Europaea ...

'' (Fabricius, 1787)^g * ''

'' (Blaisdell, 1892)^{i c g b} (purple scale predator) * ''

Rhyzobius nigripennis :Rhizobius'' is a genus in the fungi kingdom (see Disease resistance in fruit and vegetables), as well as an obsolete name for the aphid genus ''Pemphigus. ''Rhyzobius'' is a genus in the lady beetle family (Coccinellidae). It belongs to tribe C ...

'' Fauvel, 1903^g * ''

Rhyzobius oculatissimus :Rhizobius'' is a genus in the fungi kingdom (see Disease resistance in fruit and vegetables), as well as an obsolete name for the aphid genus ''Pemphigus. ''Rhyzobius'' is a genus in the lady beetle family (Coccinellidae). It belongs to tribe C ...

'' Wollaston, 1857^g * ''

Rhyzobius pulchellus :Rhizobius'' is a genus in the fungi kingdom (see Disease resistance in fruit and vegetables), as well as an obsolete name for the aphid genus ''Pemphigus. ''Rhyzobius'' is a genus in the lady beetle family (Coccinellidae). It belongs to tribe C ...

'' (Montrouzier, 1861)^g * ''

Rhyzobius ventralis ''Rhyzobius ventralis'', common names including black lady beetle, gumtree scale ladybird, is a ladybird species endemic to Tasmania and all the mainland states of Australia except the Northern Territory. It is also found in New Zealand, but not ...

'' (Erichson, 1842)^{i c g} * ''

Rhyzobius wanati :Rhizobius'' is a genus in the fungi kingdom (see Disease resistance in fruit and vegetables), as well as an obsolete name for the aphid genus ''Pemphigus. ''Rhyzobius'' is a genus in the lady beetle family (Coccinellidae). It belongs to tribe C ...

'' Tomaszewska, 2010^g Data sources: i = ITIS, c = Catalogue of Life, g = GBIF, b = Bugguide.net

Footnotes

References

* (2002): Prospects for extending the use of Australian lacewings in biological control. '' Acta Zool. Acad. Sci. Hung.'' 48(Supplement 2): 209–216
PDF fulltext
* (2007): New species of ''Epipleuria'' Fürsch and ''Rhyzobius'' Stephens from southern Africa (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae: Coccidulini). ''Annals of the Transvaal Museum'' 44: 11-24

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q1382307 Coccinellidae genera Taxa named by James Francis Stephens