Sphenoraia nebulosa  (Gyllenhal, 1808)
Home > Insects > Coleoptera > Chrysomelidae > ​​Sphenoraia nebulosa
Kingdom: Animalia
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Superfamily: Chrysomeloidea
Family: Chrysomelidae
Subfamily: Galerucinae
Tribe: ​Luperini
Genus: Sphenoraia
Species: nebulosa
  • Common names: Skeletonizing leaf beetle
  • Distribution: China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam.
  • Image locations: Mae Hong Son
  • Hosts: 
  • Additional notes: ​Michael Geiser [Image 1 - 5] I think these are all Sphenoraia nebulosa (Gyllenhal, 1808), a species with highly variable colour pattern. Interesting to see an individual with asymmetrical elytral colour (red on one side, black on the other side). I suppose this is due to some developmental defect.

    [Image 6 - 7] I think they are also Sphenoraia nebulosa, the pale colour variety without any spots. Kimoto (1989), in his key to the Indochinese Galerucinae writes:

    "Elytron entirely irregularly punctured ; elytron reddish to yellowish brown with seven black spots, and pronotum pale with two black spots ; in most pale colored specimen dorsal surfaces entirely reddish brown, and in most dark colored specimen elytron almost entirely blackish ; antenna robuster."

    The other related species in the key are S. duvivieri and S. tibialis, both with some clearly visible rows of punctures on the elytra. S. duvivieri should also have entirely blueish-black legs and antennae, clearly not the case here.
Sphenoraia nebulosa location map.jpg
Image locations
Images of Sphenoraia nebulosa from Thailand.
Sphenoraia nebulosa with abnormal asymmetrical elytral colour.jpg
Sphenoraia nebulosa (Gyllenhal, 1808) with abnormal asymmetrical elytral colour. Pai, Mae Hong Son, August 2017
Sphenoraia nebulosa with abnormal asymmetrical elytral colour image 2.jpg
Sphenoraia nebulosa (Gyllenhal, 1808) with abnormal asymmetrical elytral colour. Pai, Mae Hong Son, August 2017
Sphenoraia nebulosa dark form mating with typical form side view.jpg
Sphenoraia nebulosa (Gyllenhal, 1808) dark form mating with typical form. Pai Mae Hong Son, August 2017
Sphenoraia nebulosa dark form mating with typical form front view.jpg
Sphenoraia nebulosa (Gyllenhal, 1808) dark form mating with typical form. Pai Mae Hong Son, August 2017
Sphenoraia nebulosa typical form.jpg
Sphenoraia nebulosa (Gyllenhal, 1808) Pai, Mae Hong Son, August 2017
Sphenoraia nebulosa pale form without spots.jpg
Sphenoraia nebulosa (Gyllenhal, 1808) pale form without spots. Pai, Mae Hong Son, August 2017
Sphenoraia nebulosa pale form without spots image 2.jpg
Sphenoraia nebulosa (Gyllenhal, 1808) pale form without spots. Pai, Mae Hong Son, August 2017
Sphenoraia nebulosa typical form 2.jpg
Sphenoraia nebulosa (Gyllenhal, 1808) Pai, Mae Hong Son, December 2016
References:
​Chrysomelidae of Hong Kong Part 3 Subfamily Galerucinae