Donacia dentata Hoppe, 1795

Taxonomy: Polyphaga > Chrysomeloidea > Chrysomelidae > Donacia > Donacia dentata

Images

Donacia dentata
Source:
Malcolm Greenwood

Description

Size: 7-8.8mm
Basic colour: Bright metallic coppery-red/pink or coppery-green, often with a sparkly/'frosty' appearance.
Pattern colour: None
Number of spots: None
Pronotoum: As basic colour
Leg colour: Largely as basic colour, some parts may be red-brown. Hind legs long and curved.

Palaearctic.

Biology

Status: Sparsely scattered in the southern half of Britain, including Ireland. Scarce (Notable A)
Habitat: On host plants in the middle of dykes.
Host plant: Arrowhead, Sagittaria sagittifolia, possibly also water-plantains, Alisma spp.
Overwintering: Two-year life cycle; larvae overwinter as 1st instar (winter 1) and 5th instar (winter 2)
Food: Adults on upper surface of leaves, larvae submerged on roots and leaf axils.

Distribution (may take a minute to appear)