Prosopocera lactator

Prosopocera lactator
Museum specimen of Prosopocera lactator
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Cerambycidae
Subfamily: Lamiinae
Genus: Prosopocera
Species: P. lactator
Binomial name
Prosopocera lactator
(Fabricius, 1801)
Synonyms
  • Anoplostheta lactator (Fabricius) Dejean, 1835
  • Lamia lactator Fabricius, 1801
  • Lamia radiata Gory, 1835

Prosopocera lactator, the Turquoise Longhorn, is a species of flat-faced longhorn beetles in the subfamily Lamiinae.

Subspecies

Description

Prosopocera lactator can reach a length of about 23–37 millimetres (0.91–1.46 in). The colors and markings of these longhorn beetles are quite variable. Usually they are brown-colored, with large light greenish or whitish patches on the elytra and pronotum and turquoise leg markings. The coloration of said greenish-white patches derives from the orientation of three-dimensional photonic-crystal grains present in the scales. These beetles feed exclusively on Cashew (Anacardium occidentale). Females lay their eggs in the stems and branches of the Buffalo Thorn (Ziziphus mucronata).

Distribution

This species can be found in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea, Malawi, Mozambique, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda.

References


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