Cassidinae Explained

The Cassidinae (tortoise and leaf-mining beetles) are a subfamily of the leaf beetles, or Chrysomelidae. The antennae arise close to each other and some members have the pronotal and elytral edges extended to the side and covering the legs so as to give them the common name of tortoise beetles. Some members, such as in the tribe Hispini, are notable for the spiny outgrowths to the pronotum and elytra.

Description

The "cassidoids" have a rounded outline with the edges of the pronotum and elytra expanded, spreading out to cover the legs and head. They are often colourful and metallic, with ornate sculpturing; a few species have the ability to change the colour due to water movements within the translucent cuticle. All members of the subfamily have the mouthparts reduced into a cavity in the head capsule, the legs have four segmented tarsi. The hispoids generally have larvae that are leaf miners, while the cassidoids feed externally on the plant surfaces. Within cassidoids, the tortoise beetles are diagnosed by the larvae recycling their feces and cast exuviae into a discrete structure held on the caudal processes (or, urogomphi). Fecal shields are thought to provide protection (thermal, solar, wind, predators, parasites, parasitoids) and the experimental evidence are mixed.[1] [2]

A few species in two closely related tribes (Mesomphaliini and Eugenysini, putative sister taxa) show maternal care of larvae.[3] [4] These species can be viewed as subsocial or parasocial, with evidence pointing to there being two evolutionary origins of subsociality within this one lineage.[3] [5]

Taxonomy

It includes both the former subfamily "Hispinae" (leaf-mining beetles), as well as the former more narrowly defined subfamily Cassidinae (familiar as tortoise beetles) which are now split into several tribes that include the tribe Cassidini, and in all include over 125 genera. The traditional separation of the two groups was based essentially on the habitats of the larvae and the general shapes of the adults. The name Cassidinae for the merged subfamily is considered to have priority.[6]

The former grouping of "Hispinae" (sometimes called leaf-mining beetles, or "hispoids") included the tribes Alurnini, Anisoderini, Aproidini, Arescini, Bothryonopini, Callispini, Callohispini, Cephaloleiini, Chalepini, Coelaenomenoderini, Cryptonychini, Cubispini, Eurispini, Exothispini, Gonophorini, Hispini, Hispoleptini, Hybosispini, Leptispini, Oediopalpini, Oncocephalini, Promecothecini, Prosopodontini, Sceloenoplini and Spilophorini. Most members of these tribes are elongated, slightly flattened beetles with parallel margins, and antennal bases close together on their small heads. They often have punctate elytra and pronotum, sometimes with spines both on and along the edges. The former grouping of Cassidinae (sometimes called tortoise beetles, or "cassidoids") included the tribes Aspidimorphini, Basiprionotini, Cassidini, Delocraniini, Dorynotini, Eugenysini, Goniocheniini, Hemisphaerotini, Mesomphaliini, Notosacanthini, Omocerini and Physonotini.

BioLib currently (March 2024) includes the following tribes:

Aspidimorphini

Auth. Chapuis, 1875; genera:

  1. Aspidimorpha Hope, 1840
  2. Conchyloctenia Spaeth, 1902
  3. Hybosinota Spaeth, 1909
  4. Laccoptera Boheman, 1855
  5. Mahatsinia Weise, 1910
  6. Nilgiraspis Spaeth, 1932

Basiprionotini

Auth. Gressitt, 1952; genera:

  1. Androya Spaeth, 1911
  2. Basiprionota Chevrolat, 1837
  3. Cassidopsis Fairmaire, 1899
  4. Craspedonta Chevrolat, 1837
  5. Epistictina Hincks, 1950
  6. Megapyga Boheman, 1850
  7. Metriopepla Fairmaire, 1882
  8. Pseudandroya Spaeth, 1952

Imatidiini

Auth. Hope, 1840 (= Cephaloleiini); genera:

  1. Aslamidium Borowiec, 1984
  2. Calliaspis Dejean, 1837
  3. Cyclantispa Sekerka, 2014
  4. Demotispa Baly, 1858
  5. Imatidium Fabricius, 1801
  6. Katkispa Sekerka, 2014
  7. Lechispa Sekerka, 2014
  8. Parentispa Sekerka, 2014
  9. Parimatidium Spaeth, 1938
  10. Pseudostilpnaspis Borowiec, 2000
  11. Spaethaspis Hincks, 1952
  12. Stilpnaspis Weise, 1905
  13. Weiseispa Sekerka, 2014
  14. Windsorispa Sekerka, 2014

Notosacanthini

Auth. Gressitt, 1952

  1. Herminella Spaeth, 1913
  2. Hermosacantha Borowiec & Świetojańska, 2014
  3. Notosacantha Chevrolat, 1837
Omocerini Physonotini = synonyms Ischyrosonychini and Physonotini
  • Spilophorini (= Oediopalpini)

    • Stolaini

    Auth. Hincks, 1952

    1. Acromis Chevrolat, 1837
    2. Amythra Spaeth, 1913
    3. Anacassis Spaeth, 1913
    4. Anepsiomorpha Spaeth, 1913
    5. Botanochara Dejean, 1837
    6. Chelymorpha Chevrolat, 1837
    7. Convexocoleus Shin, 2013
    8. Cyrtonota Chevrolat, 1837
    9. Echoma Chevrolat, 1837
    10. Elytrogona Chevrolat, 1837
    11. Eutheria (beetle) Spaeth, 1909
    12. Hilarocassis Spaeth, 1913
    13. Mesomphalia Hope, 1839
    14. Nebraspis Spaeth, 1913
    15. Ogdoecosta Spaeth, 1909
    16. Omaspides Chevrolat, 1837
    17. Paraselenis Spaeth, 1913
    18. Phytodectoidea Spaeth, 1909
    19. Poecilaspidella Spaeth, 1913
    20. Stoiba Spaeth, 1909
    21. Stolas (beetle) Billberg, 1820
    22. Terpsis Spaeth, 1913
    23. Trilaccodea Spaeth, 1902
    24. Xenicomorpha Spaeth, 1913
    25. Zatrephina Spaeth, 1909

    In addition, Borowiec & Świętojańska (2014)[7] included:

    Aproidini
    1. Aproida Pascoe, 1863[8]
    Chalepini (= Uroplatini)
  • Cryptonychini
  • Cubispini

    • The subfamily names Cassidinae and Hispinae are both founded by Gyllenhal in the same 1813 book, but following the Principle of the First Reviser, Chen in this case,[9] priority is given to the name Cassidinae.

    See also

    External links

    Notes and References

    1. Chaboo, C.S., S. Adam, K. Nishida, L. Schletzbaum. 2023. Architecture, construction, retention, and repair of fecal shields in three tribes of tortoise beetles (Insecta: Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae Cassidinae: Cassidini, Mesomphaliini, Spilophorini). ZooKeys Special Issue, Research on Chrysomelidae 9. ZooKeys 1177:87–146. DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1177.102600
    2. Chemoecology. 2009. 19. 1. 63–66. Faecal shield chemical defence is not important in larvae of the tortoise beetle Chelymorpha reimoseri (Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae: Stolaini). Bottcher, A . Jorge Paulo Zolin . Flávia Nogueira-de-Sá . José Roberto Trigo . 10.1007/s00049-009-0006-x. 23072397.
    3. Chaboo, C.S., F.A. Frieiro-Costa, J. Gómez-Zurita, R. Westerduijn. 2014. Subsociality in leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae, Chrysomelinae). Journal of Natural History 48: 1–44.
    4. Book: 2148. Capinera, JL. 2. Encyclopedia of Entomology. 2008. limited. Springer. Leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Flowers, RW.
    5. Leocádio . Michele. Simões . Marianna V. P. . Sekarka . Lukas . Shrago . Carlos G. . Mermudes . José R. M. . Windsor . Donald M. . 2020 . Molecular systematics reveals the origins of subsociality in tortoise beetles (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae, Cassidinae) . . 45 . 4 . 894–910 . 10.1111/syen.12434. 219450159 .
    6. Biology and phylogeny of the Cassidinae Gyllenhal sensu lato (tortoise and leaf-mining beetles) (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae). Chaboo, CS. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. 305. 1–250. 2007. 10.1206/0003-0090(2007)305[1:BAPOTC]2.0.CO;2. 83469991 . free.
    7. Borowiec, L.; Świętojańska, J. 2014: 2.7.2 Cassidinae Gyllenhal, 1813. Pp. 198–217 in: Leschen et al., 2014
    8. Chaboo, C.S., V.E. Sandoval-Gómez, M. Hopper, & G.B. Monteith. 2024. Biology of Aproida balyi Pascoe, 1863 (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae: Aproidini) on its host plant, Eustrephus latifolius R. Rr. ex Ker-Gawl (Asparagaceae) in Australia. Insecta Mundi 1074: 1-28.
    9. Chen, S. H.. 1940. Attempt at a new classification of the leaf beetles. Sinensia. 11. 451–481.

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