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Beetles of Zihuatanejo

ORDER COLEOPTERA

Essostrutha laeta
Essostrutha laeta

-Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

-Arthropods (Phylum Arthropoda)

-Hexapods (Subphylum Hexapoda)

-Insects (Class Insecta)

-Winged and Once-winged Insects (Subclass Pterygota)

-Beetles (Order Coleoptera​​)

-​Water, Rove, Scarab, Long-horned, Leaf, and Snout Beetles (Suborder Polyphaga)

-​Cucujiform Beetles (Infraorder Cucujiformia)

-Longhorn Beetles (Family Cerambycidae)​

-​Flat-faced Longhorn Beetles (Subfamily Lamiinae)ae)

-Tribe Hemilophini

-Genus Essostrutha

-Essostrutha laeta


Essostrutha laeta is a species of flat-faced longhorn beetle in the family Cerambycidae, belonging to the tribe Desmiphorini. Like other longhorn beetles, E. laeta is notable for its elongated body, long antennae, and preference for wooded habitats. The larvae of E. laeta are wood-borers, meaning they bore into and feed on the wood of trees and shrubs. They play a role in decomposing dead or decaying wood, aiding in nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems.

Diet

  • Adults: Feed primarily on flowers, foliage and tender plant tissues. Adults have been associated with flowers of Asclepias and with foliage of plants such as Jatropha curcas, Gliricidia sepium and Melampodium divaricatum.

  • Larvae: Develop within woody plant material, where they feed on plant tissues as they tunnel through stems or branches.

Range

  • Essostrutha laeta occurs from the southern United States through Mexico and into Guatemala.

  • It occurs in the Zihuatanejo region of Guerrero and is associated with the tropical dry forests of western Mexico.

Habitat

  • Found in tropical dry forest, tropical deciduous forest, woodland edges, secondary vegetation, agricultural areas and forest clearings.

  • Adults are frequently encountered on foliage and flowers, particularly in sunny vegetation.

  • Larvae develop concealed within woody plant material.

Size

  • Adult length: approximately 10–15 mm (0.4–0.6 in).

  • Body elongate and somewhat cylindrical, with extremely long, slender antennae.

  • Colouration is variable, ranging from reddish-orange to yellowish or olive-brown, often with darker markings on the elytra.

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