Geniates barbatus

Geniates barbatus

Geniates barbatus is a beetle in the family Scarabaeidae.
Geniates barbatus - Yellow Beetle / Besouro-Amarelo (Kirby, 1818) Coleoptera: Polyphaga: Scarabaeiformia: Scarabaeoidea: Scarabaeidae: Rutelinae: Geniatini These beetles are found from northern Panama to central Chile and southern Argentina; this includes Brazil, where the subject portrayed was found. They are members of the order Coleoptera, suborder Polyphaga, infraorder Scarabeiformia, superfamily Scarabaeoidea, family Scarabaeidae, subfamily Rutelinae and tribe Geniatini. The feeding habits of immature Geniates barbatus are unknown, but it is speculated that they feed on the roots of grasses (Poaceae) and other plants - as they are always found underground when in the larval phase - until entering the pupa stage and emerging from the ground as an adult, proceeding to mate and to lay the eggs underground. The adult's hosts include Eucalyptus robustus (Sm.), E. tereticornis (Sm.) (Myrtaceae), and Cammellia sinensis (Kuntze) (Ternstroemiaceae, otherwise known popularly as "tea"). The adult was also seen defoliating other plants, like: Anacardium occidentale (L.) (Anacardiaceae) (cashew, "cajueiro"), Cocos nucifera (L.) (Arecaceae) (coconut palm, "coqueiro"), Eugenia pitanga ((O. Berg) Nied.) (Myrtaceae) (Surinam cherry, "pitangueira"), Mangifera indica (L.) (Anacardiaceae) (mango tree, "mangueira"), Rosa spp. (Rosaceae), Psidium guajava (L.) (Myrtaceae) (guava tree, "goiabeira") and Terminalia sp. (Combretaceae) (Anjos & Majer, 2003; Costa Lima, 1953; Silva et al., 1968). The larvae of Geniatini seem to be more similar to Anoplognathini than to Rutelini or Anomalini. Their habitats are gardens, pastures, forests, fields, weedy places and woods; they are mostly found buried underground where there are Poaceae growing. Source: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0085-56262013000100007 Date: 17th of October, 2017 at 07:50:32pm. Arthropoda,Beetles,Benedito Novo,Brasil,Brazil,Brazilian Beetles,Coleoptera,Geniates,Geniates barbatus,Geniatini,Insecta,Insects,Polyphaga,Rutelinae,Santa Catarina,Scarabaeidae,Scarabaeoidea,beetle,besouro,insect

Appearance

Black head with pink eyes; yellowish-tan pronotum and legs; middle and hind legs covered in dark spines; elytra yellowish tan with darker brown spots and striations.

Distribution

These beetles are found from northern Panama to central Chile and southern Argentina; this includes Brazil.

Behavior

The larvae of Geniates barbatus are speculated to eat the roots of grasses (Poaceae) and other plants - as they are always found underground when in the larval phase.

Habitat

Their habitats are gardens, pastures, forests, fields, weedy places and woods; they are mostly found buried underground where there are Poaceae growing.

References:

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Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionArthropoda
ClassInsecta
OrderColeoptera
FamilyScarabaeidae
GenusGeniates
SpeciesGeniates barbatus
Photographed in
Brazil