Key to the Alabama Species of Disonycha
Disonycha pensylvanica (Illiger)
Disonycha procera Casey*
Disonycha alternata (Illiger)
Disonycha arizonae Casey*
Disonycha caroliniana (Fabricius)
Disonycha fumata lodingi Schaeffer
Disonycha discoidea discoidea (Fabricius)
Disonycha discoidea abbreviata Melsheimer*
Disonycha leptolineata Blatchley
Disonycha alabamae Schaeffer
Disonycha admirabilis Blatchley*
Disonycha balsbaughi Blake
Disonycha glabrata (Fabricius)
Disonycha collata (Fabricius)
Disonycha xanthomelas (Dalman)
Disonycha triangularis (Say) *
Disonycha funerea (Randall)

1. Elytra entirely unicolorous, margins concolorous with disc….. 2
    Elytra bi colored….. 5
2. Dorsum bicolored, elytra black, blue or green and pronotum yellow, with or without       spots….. 3
     Dorsum unicolorous, either entirely black in relatively fresh specimens, or fusco-testaceous      in old, faded museum specimens….. D. funera
3. Head entirely dark….. 4
    Head bicolored….. D. collata
4. Head coarsely, densely punctate, legs entirely dark….. D. triangularis
    Head smooth, or sparsely punctate on occiput and frons, legs dark but femora pale at      base….. D. xanthomelas
5. Elytra either vittate or black, with broad or narrow margins always pale….. 6
    Elytra vittate with dark lateral margins….. D. glabrata
6. Elytra not vittate….. 7
    Elytra vittate….. 8
7. Elytra black with narrow yellow margins (dark form)….. D. arizonae
    Elytra pale with broad discal dark spot….. D. discoidea discoidea
8. Elytra with 3 vittae….. 9
    Elytra with 5 vittae….. 10
9. Elytra distinctly punctate….. D. discoidea abbreviata
    Elytra very indistinctly punctate….. D. leptolineata
10. Head partly or entirely dark..... 11
      Head entirely pale (sometimes tip of mandibles, darkened)..... D. caroliniana
11. Head not entirely dark..... 12
      Head entirely dark except antennal sockets..... D. pensylvanica
12. Pronotum uneven, with lateral callosities, elytra of females costate..... 13
      Pronotum evenly convex, without depressions or callosities, elytra of females not costate.....       14
13. Head densely and usually rugosely punctate, with at most a narrow dark occipital band or        spot, not extending to tubercles..... D. alternata
      Head not densely or rugosely punctate, with broad dark occipital band extending to and       often covering the frontal tubercles..... D. procera
14. Median elytral vitta not nearer to submarginal vitta than to sutural vitta..... 15
      Median elytral vitta conspicuously near submarginal vitta..... D. alabamae
15. Pronotum smooth, shining, not or very minutely alutaceous, elytra finely to indistinctly        punctate..... 16
       Pronotum distinctly alutaceous; elytra densely punctate..... D. arizonae
16. Smaller (5.1-7.0 mm.), oval or oblong oval; pronotum immaculate, rarely with 2 small brown       spots..... 17
      Larger (6.0-7.7 mm.), broadly oval; pronotum with 2 apical median brown or black spots       and sometimes faint brown indications of lateral spots..... D. fumata lodingi
17. Pronotum less convex; scutellum pale; median vittae broader than sutural and submarginal       and usually short, ending at apical declivity..... D. balsbaughi
      Pronotum convex; scutellum dark; median vittae not noticeably broader than others,        extending beyond apical declivity (Fig. 32)..... D. admirabilis

Disonycha pensylvanica (Illiger)

Haltica pensylvanica Illiger, 1807, Mag. Insektenk. 6: 146.
?Galleruca sexlineata Olivier, 1808, Entomol. 6: 642.
Disonycha pensylvanica parva Blatchley, 1922, Jour. N. Y. Entomol. Soc. 29: 16 (var.).
     Elongate. Head black with yellow ring around antennal insertions. Prothorax yellow with black pronotal discal spot. Elytra yellow with broad sutural, medial, and submarginal vittae; epipleurae black on mesal margin; elytra costate in females. Venter black with apical abdominal segment yellow; legs black. Length 5.1-6.5 mm. Width 2.5-3.0 mm.
     Alabama records: 18 specimens from Dallas¹, Houston¹, Lee¹, Macon¹, and Mobile^2,3 counties.
     Seasonal distribution: March 29-August 28.
     Remarks: Disonycha pensylvanica has been collected on Polygonum sp. (17). Our specimens for the most part were collected from aquatic habitats. One specimen was taken at light.

Disonycha procera Casey*

?Haltica vicina Kirby, 1837, Fauna Boreali Amer. 4: 217.
?Disonycha limbicollis pallipes Crotch, 1873, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 25: 64 (var.).
Disonycha procera Casey, 1884, Contributions, pt. 2, p. 182.
Disonycha pennsylvania Horn, 1889, Trans. Amer. Entomol. Soc. 16: 202.
Disonycha pallipes Blake, 1930, Bull. Brooklyn Entomol. Soc. 25: 212.
Disonycha nigriventris Schaeffer, 1931, Jour. N. Y. Entomol. Soc. 39: 282.
     Elongate. Head black, clypeus yellow. Prothorax yellow with pronotum having triangular black medial discal spot and occasionally brown lateral calllosities. Elytra rather strongly punctate, yellow with black sutural, medial and submarginal vittae, costate in females; mesal edge of epipleurae black. Margins of abdomen and legs yellow. Length 6.5-6.7 mm. Width 2.8-3.9 mm.
     Alabama records: 3 specimens from Dallas¹ and Mobile² counties.
     Seasonal distribution: June 14.
     Remarks: Disonycha procera is reported to have fed on Polygonum sp. (17).

Disonycha alternata (Illiger) (Fig. 10)

Haltica alternata Illiger, 1807, Mag. Insektenk. 6: 144.
?Altica quinquevittata Say, 1824, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 4: 88.
Disonycha alternata Strum, 1843, Cat., p. 283.
Disonycha quinquevittata Horn, 1889, Trans. Amer. Entomol. Soc. 16: 203.
Disonycha quinquevittata punctigera Schaeffer, 1931, Jour. N. Y. Entomol. Soc. 39: 279 (var.).
     Oblong oval. Head yellow or red-yellow, labrum and occiput dark brown or black; frons with deep medial fovea, vertex coarsely punctate. Pronotum yellow with lateral callosities usually red-brown and 2 medial discal black spots. Elytra yellow with sutural, medial, and submarginal black vittae. Apexes of tibiae and tarsi black. Length 7.9-9.1 mm. Width 3.3-4.6 mm.
     Alabama records: 79 specimens from Clarke^1,2, Escambia¹, Lee¹, Macon¹, Mobile², Monroe¹, and Tuscaloosa² counties.
     Seasonal distribution: May 5-August 5.
     Remarks: This species feeds on Salix sp. An interesting observation of apparent mimicry was noted when a single ground beetle, Lebia vittata (Fabricius), a predator of chrysomelids, was taken along with large numbers of D. alternata in Macon County (see also Balsbaugh (3)).

Disonycha arizonae Casey*

Disonycha arizonae Casey, 1884, Contributions, pt. 1, p. 52.
Disonycha glabrata Jacoby, 1884, Biol. Centr. Amer. 6(1): 311.
Disonycha davisi Schaeffer, 1924, Jour. N. Y. Entomol. Soc.
     Oval. Head yellow, labrum light brown to black. Pronotum yellow (red in fresher specimens), alutaceous, strongly punctate, with 2 black discal spots. Elytra strongly punctate, yellow with sutural, medial, and submarginal vittae or entirely black with narrow yellow margin. Length 6.0-7.4 mm. Width 3.2-3.8 mm.
     Alabama records: 8 specimens from Clay¹, Lee¹, Macon¹, Marion¹, and Tallapoosa¹ counties.
     Seasonal distribution: April 13.
     Remarks: Two specimens of the dark form, which was first observed by Blake (20), were among the above specimens from Marion County.

Disonycha caroliniana (Fabricius)

Crioceris caroliniana Fabricius, 1775, Syst. Entomol. p. 122.
?Cistela svittata Fabricius, 1792, Entomol. Syst. pt. 2, p. 47.
?Cistela vittata Fabricius, 1801, Syst. Eleuth. I, p. 491.
Disonycha pulchra Casey, 1884, Contributions I., p. 51.
     Oval. Head entirely pale yellow, vertex and frons smooth, shining tubercles not prominent. Pronotum evenly convex, smooth shining, yellow with 2 black discal spots. Elytra very finely alutaceous, shining, yellow with black sutural, medial, and submarginal vittae. Venter pale; tibiae and tarsi dark brown or black. Length 5.3-7.7 mm. Width 2.8-4.2 mm.
     Alabama records: 14 specimens from Covington¹, Lee¹, Macon¹, Marion¹, and Mobile² counties.
     Seasonal distribution: April 7-September 13.
     Remarks: John Durant collected a series of 3 beetles in Macon County on Pinus taeda. This is perhaps the first recorded host species of this beetle.

Disonycha fumata lodingi Schaeffer

Disonycha lodingi Schaeffer, 1919, Jour. N. Y. Entomol. Soc. 27: 337.
     Broadly oval. Head yellow, labrum black; antennae long (to at least 1/2 body length). Pronotum evenly convex, shining yellow with 2 black discal spots. Elytra yellow with black sutural, medial, and submarginal vittae. Venter and femora red-yellow, tibiae and tarsi black; apical tarsal segment and claws brown. Length 6.0-7.7 mm. Width 3.5-4.6 mm.
     Alabama records: 11 specimens from Mobile^1,2,3 County.
     Seasonal distribution: April 1-September 26.
     Remarks: Beetles of this species have been collected in saline marshes (75) at Delchamps, the type locality of the subspecies. This subspecies can be distinguished from D. caroliniana by its dark labrum and longer antennae.

Disonycha discoidea discoidea (Fabricius)

Galleruca discoides Fabricius, 1792, Entomol. Syst. I., p. 25.
Disonycha nigridorsis Sturns, 1876, Cat., in Gemminger and Harold, Cat. Coleopt., p. 3497.
     Oval. Head shining, yellow, labrum usually yellow but occassionally brown. Pronotum entirely yellow. Elytra broadly ovate, yellow with black discal spot leaving broad yellow margin; humeri black in 1 specimen. Length 7.0-8.2 mm. Width 4.0-4.6 mm.
     Alabama records: 14 specimens from Chambers³, Cleburne¹, Colbert³, Lee¹, Macon¹, Madison¹, and Tuscaloosa² counties.
     Seasonal distribution: April 16-September.
     Remarks: These beetles feed on Passiflora lutea (17) and P. incarnata (G. W. Folkerts, personal communication). Chambers and Colbert county records are from Blake (17).

Disonycha discoidea abbreviata Melsheimer*

Disonycha abbreviata Melsheimer, 1847, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 3: 163.
     Oval. Head orange-yellow, tips of mandibles brown. Pronotum shining orange-yellow. Scutellum yellow. Elytra yellow with black sutural and medial vittae, margins broadly orange-yellow. (In older pinned specimens, elytral margins, pronotum and head yellow.) Outer edge of tibiae and tarsi black. Length 6.3 mm. Width 3.3 mm.
     Alabama records: 7 specimens from Cleburne¹ and Macon¹ counties.
     Seasonal distribution: March 29-May 16.

Disonycha leptolineata Blatchley

Disonycha abbreviata leptolineata Blatchley, 1917, Canadian Entomol. 40: 143 (var.).
     Oblong oval. Head entirely yellow. Pronotum yellow, finely alutaceous and minutely punctate. Elytra yellow with black sutural and median vittae, submarginal area translucent as if indicating red hues of fresher specimens. Tarsi and tibiae on outer surface brown. Length 6.5 mm. Width 3.3 mm.
     Alabama records: 2 specimens from Lee¹ and Mobile³ counties.
     Seasonal distribution: July 12.
     Remarks: The variety texana Schaeffer was recorded from Mobile County by Loding (75); however, no specimens of this form were found in his collection.

Disonycha alabamae Schaeffer

Disonycha alabamae Schaeffer, 1919, Jour. N. Y. Entomol. Soc. 27: 337.
     Oblong oval. Head yellow, labrum brown. Prothorax alutaceous, finely punctate. Scutellum black. Elytra yellow with black sutural, median, and narrow submarginal vittae; median vittae situated much nearer submarginal than sutural, only narrow vitta of yellow between these. Length 5.8 mm. Width 3.2 mm.
     Alabama records: 2 specimens from Mobile^2,3 and Randolph¹ counties.
     Remarks: This is apparently a rare species, known only from the type locality, Citronelle, Alabama, Randolph County, Alabama, Columbus, Texas, and recently from Long Island, New York, the latter in the V. M. Kirk Collection. G. W. Folkerts collected the Randolph County specimen on Talinum teretifolium.

Disonycha admirabilis Blatchley* (Fig. 32)

Disonycha admirabilis Blatchley, 1924, Jour. N. Y. Entomol. Soc. 32: 90.
     Oval. Head yellow, labrum brown. Pronotum shining, smooth or extremely finely alutaceous, or faintly punctate, entirely yellow or rarely with 2 brown discal spots. Elytra yellow with sutural, medial, and submarginal vittae. Tibiae and tarsi brown. Length 5.1-6.7 mm. Width 2.5-3.3 mm.
     Alabama records: 63 specimens from Clay¹, Cleburne¹, Etowah¹, Houston¹, Jackson¹, Lee¹, Macon¹, Mobile^1,2, Tallapoosa¹, Wilcox¹, and Winston¹ counties.
     Seasonal distribution: April 1-November 27.
     Remarks: Although one of the most commonly collected species of Disonycha, D. admirabilis had not previously been recorded from Alabama. Cassia sp., a "wild legume," and Polygonum sp. are the noted host plants (17).

Disonycha balsbaughi Blake

Disonycha balsbaughi Blake, 1970, Proc. Entomol. Soc. Wash. 72: 320.
     Oblong oval. Head pale yellow except for brown mouth parts. Pronotum not very convex, smooth, shining, nearly impunctate, and entirely pale. Elytra yellow with medial vittae broader than others and frequently reaching only to apical declivity. Apical half of tibiae and tarsi dark. Length 5.5-7.0 mm. Width 3.0-3.5 mm.
     Alabama records: 4 specimens from Jackson³ and Winston³ counties.
     Seasonal distribution: June 17-19.
     Remarks: These 4 unusual specimens were discovered in Loding's collection and were sent to Mrs. Doris H. Blake at the Smithsonian Institution who confirmed our opinion that they were new (26).

Disonycha glabrata (Fabricius)

Crioceris tomentosa Fabricius, 1775, Syst. Entomol., p. 122 (not Linnaeus).
Crioceris glabrata Fabricius, 1781, Spec. Insectorum, I., p. 156.
Altica vittata Olivier, 1789, Encycl. Meth. IV., p. 105.
Altica alternata Latreille, 1833, in Voy. Humboldt, Zool. II., p. 39.
Disonycha horticola Chevrolat, 1837, in Dejean Cat.
Disonycha albicollis Sturns, Cat., p. 283.
     Elongate. Head yellow, labrum, frons, vertex, and occiput black. Pronotum shining yellow with single median or 3 discal black spots. Elytra yellow with wide black sutural, median, and marginal vittae (margin itself, black). Venter yellow or brown, except metasternum black; legs black or brown or yellow with apexes of tibiae, knees, and dorsal surface of femoral apexes dark brown or black. Length 5.4-6.5 mm. Width 2.8-3.4 mm.
     Alabama records: 149 specimens from Baldwin¹, Butler¹, Colbert¹, DeKalb¹, Elmore¹, Houston¹, Lee¹, Limestone¹, Macon¹, Marengo¹, Marshall¹, Mobile^1,2,3, Talladega¹, Tallapoosa¹, Wilcox¹, and Winston¹ counties.
     Seasonal distribution: March 19-September 6.
     Remarks: This very common flea beetle feeds normally on Amaranthus spinosus, but it was also collected by sweeping Salix sp. and Trifolium incarnatum.

Disonycha collata (Fabricius)

Crioceris collata Fabricius, 1801, Syst. Eleuth. I., p. 463.
?Disonycha collaris Dejean, 1837, Cat. p. 414.
Disonycha mellicollis Horn, 1889, Trans. Amer. Entomol. Soc. 16: 211.
     Oval. Head with vertex and frons shining metallic green or blue; clypeus yellow; labrum brown. Prothorax and femora yellow. Elytra shining metallic blue or green. Abdomen yellow laterally, darker brown to black medially. Tarsi and tibiae apically, black. Length 4.6-5.3 mm. Width 2.3-3.0 mm.
     Alabama records: 21 specimens from Lee¹ and Mobile^1,2 counties.
     Seasonal distribution: January 3-July 2.
     Remarks: This flea-beetle feeds on Portulacca sp., Amaranthus sp., spinach (Atriplex oleracea), beet (Beta vulgaris), chickweed (Stellaria spp.), and lettuce (Latuca sp.) (17).

Disonycha xanthomelas (Dalman)

Haltica collaris Illiger, 1807, Mag. Insektenk. 6: 126.
Haltica xanthomelas Dalman, 1823, Analecta Entomol., p. 79.
Disonycha xanthomelaena Gemminger and Harold, 1889, Cat. Coleopt. p. 3497.
Disonycha merdivora Melsheimer, 1853, Cat., p. 122.
     Elongate oval. Head shining black. Prothorax yellow. Elytra punctate, shining black with faint green hint. Prosternum and abdomen yellow ventrally; meso and metathorax ventrally black. Legs black, bases of femora yellow. Length 4.9-6.5 mm. Width 2.5-3.9 mm.
     Alabama records: 8 specimens from Henry¹, Lee¹ and Mobile² counties.
     Seasonal distribution: May 5-July 2.
     Remarks: This is commonly called the spinach flea beetle. Chickweed (Stellaria media), Chenopodium album, Amaranthus spinosus, spinach (Atriplex oleracea), and beet (Beta vulgaris) are its food plants (17).

Disonycha triangularis (Say)*

Haltica collaris Illiger, 1807, Mag. Insektenk. 6: 126.
Haltica xanthomelas Dalman, 1823, Analecta Entomol., p. 79.
Disonycha xanthomelaena Gemminger and Harold, 1889, Cat. Coleopt. p. 3497.
Disonycha merdivora Melsheimer, 1853, Cat., p. 122.
     Elongate oval. Head shining black. Prothorax yellow. Elytra punctate, shining black with faint green hint. Prosternum and abdomen yellow ventrally; meso and metathorax ventrally black. Legs black, bases of femora yellow. Length 4.9-6.5 mm. Width 2.5-3.9 mm.
     Alabama records: 8 specimens from Henry¹, Lee¹ and Mobile² counties.
     Seasonal distribution: May 5-July 2.
     Remarks: This is commonly called the spinach flea beetle. Chickweed (Stellaria media), Chenopodium album, Amaranthus spinosus, spinach (Atriplex oleracea), and beet (Beta vulgaris) are its food plants (17).

Disonycha funerea (Randall)

Haltica funerea Randall, 1838, Boston Jour. Nat. Hist. 2, p. 47.
     "Elongate oval, entirely lusterless black except the last 2 or 3 ventral segments, which are more or less pale yellow; antennae short and heavy." (17). Length 6.0 mm. Width 3.0 mm.
     Alabama records: 1 specimen from Mobile^2,3 County.
     Remarks: Mrs. Blake (17) remarked, "This is the most curious and probably one of the rarest of North American species of Disonycha." Since the preceding was written the Loding specimen has become even more curious. It has faded, losing all its blackness, until it is now fusco-testaceous. The 4th and 5th ventral abdominal segments are still lighter yellow. Using Mrs. Blake's key to species, this beetle has faded so much that it now keys to D. antennata Jacoby, a species of tropical Florida and Mexico. Proper identification as D. funera (Randall) was accorded by two determination labels on the specimen pin, one of Schaeffer's and one unrecognized.