Galeruca laticollis

Community and Forum → Insects biology and faunistics → Galeruca laticollis

Necrocephalus, 15.10.2006 17:17

Back in the summer, in the Stavropol Territory, almost at the top of Mount Beshtau (height 1402 meters), I caught a leaf beetle, which I immediately unmistakably identified as a representative of the genus Galeruca. I haven't had enough time to define it yet, and today I finally got to it: it turned out that it was Galeruca laticollis, but the distribution area for this species in the "Index of Insects of the European part of the USSR" is indicated as a forest zone (even forest-steppe is not indicated). Doubtful, I started searching for photos of this species on the Internet, and found. What is shown in the photo is almost identical to what I have (the beetle on the left is especially similar). Question: is it possible to identify my beetle as Galeruca laticollis, turning a blind eye to the area of this species indicated in the identifier, or not? In principle, I understand that Mount Beshtau (which, by the way, is densely forested) can be inhabited by an island population of this species, but I still have doubts-what if I misidentified the beetle?

Comments

18.10.2006 11:46, Mylabris

Based on my seven years of experience with qualifiers, I will say the following:
last of all, you should look at the distribution of taxa in the definition tables - the most important thing is morphological signs!
And don't be confused by such a well-researched area. Always with a thorough search, there is something interesting. Moreover, the ranges always tend to change, and more than forty years have passed since the European determinant (1965) was published!
In the vicinity of such a megalopolis as Alma-Ata (with a population of 1.5 million), I found about 20 species of beetles, previously unknown from south-eastern Kazakhstan, of which two - for the first time in Central Asia in general!
So, I assure you that interesting finds are always possible. And please pay attention to my proposed topic-area mapping - I would like to know your opinion.