Tag: Rosemary Beetle Chrysolina americana

Beautiful Beetle

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x3 images. Double click to enlarge.

This is the Rosemary Beetle (Chrysolina americana) which I found on my Lavender. It looks like it has been crafted from soft metals and has been purposefully engraved with rows of tiny circular indents.

As beautiful as it may look, it is considered a pest of Rosemary, Lavender, Sage, Thyme and similar plants, both the adult and the larva feeding on the foliage … although it hasn’t caused me any bother.

The beetle is a native of southern Europe that has become established in Britain since the 1990s especially in the south east of England. It is continuing to extend its range.

Rosemary Beetle

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Chrysolina americana

This attractive beetle is from a family called Chrysomelidae the leaf beetles. It is a fairly recent newomer to Britain, introduced in the 1990s and now established in most of England and Wales, and still expanding its range. It is considered a pest of Rosemary, Lavender, Sage, Thyme and similar plants, both the adult and the larva feeding on the foliage. It is the first time I have seen it here, and will have to see if it is a ‘pest’ as such. It is 6.7-8 mm long. The adults can be seen throughout the year, even during winter.

Rosemary Beetle Chrysolina americana
It kind of doesn’t look real, but looks manufactured from copper or the like.
Rosemary Beetle Chrysolina americana
Note the deeply ‘punched’ markings forming rows on the elytra and the sides of the protonum.