Diabrotica cristata, a chrysomelid (Coleoptera) of relict Midwestern prairies discovered in eastern serpentine barrens.
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AbstractDiabrotica cristata a galerucine chrysomelid characteristic of relict prairie ecosystems in the Great Plains but seldom collected on the eastern seaboard, is reported from four serpentine barrens in southeastern Pennsylvania and one in adjacent Maryland. Large populations were present in two of the barrens, with adults collected from inflorescenses of two grasses and from 17 species of forbs in 7 families. The larval host was not determined but it is suggested to be little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium, a perennial grass dominate on serpentine soils, or the less abundant, big bluestem, Andropogon gerardii, a known host of D. cristata in midwestern prairies. Access |