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potato beetle
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Orange larvae of the Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) with black spots feeding on green leaves.
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potato beetle

insect
Also known as: Lema trilineata
Written and fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
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History

potato beetle, (Lema daturaphila), species of leaf beetle that was one of the most destructive potato pests until the spread of the related Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) in the 1850s.

Taxonomy

See also list of beetles.

About 6 mm (less than 0.25 inch) long, the potato beetle is yellow with three black stripes on its wing covers. Eggs are laid on the underside of a potato leaf, on which both larvae and adults feed. The larvae are camouflaged by fecal shields formed of excrement the beetles pile on their backs. Two generations occur each year, the second of which spends the winter in the ground in the pupal stage.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Melissa Petruzzello.