Lamprodila festiva

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Lamprodila festiva
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Clade: Pancrustacea
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Suborder: Polyphaga
Infraorder: Elateriformia
Family: Buprestidae
Genus: Lamprodila
Species:
L. festiva
Binomial name
Lamprodila festiva
(Linnaeus, 1767)
Synonyms
List
  • Buprestis decemmaculata Rossi, 1792
  • Buprestis decempunctata Fabricius, 1798
  • Buprestis festiva Linnaeus, 1767
  • Lampra bonnairei Fairmaire, 1884
  • Lampra caerulans Hoschek, 1929
  • Lamprodila bonnairei (Fairmaire, 1884)
  • Lamprodila decemmaculata (Rossi, 1792)
  • Lamprodila decempunctata (Fabricius, 1798)
  • Ovalisia festiva (Linnaeus, 1767)
  • Palmar festiva (Linnaeus, 1767)
  • Scintillatrix festiva (Linnaeus, 1767)

Lamprodila festiva, known as the juniper jewel beetle, is a European species of metallic wood-boring beetles[1] associated with Cupressaceae trees. It is native to the Mediterranean region and during the 21st century, it has been rapidly spreading northward.[2][3] It is considered a serious invasive pest of ornamental conifers.[4][5]

Description

The adult beetles are 6-12 mm long, metallic green with steel blue spots on the shield and elytra. The legless larvae are 15-20 mm long, cream colored, with strongly sclerotized mandibles and a strongly broadened anterior part of the thoracic segment.[5]

Distribution

The species is native to North Africa (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya), Mediterannean Europe (Spain, France, Italy, Croatia, Greece, etc.), and Mediterannean West Asia (Turkey, Lebanon).[2][3] Starting in early 2000s, it has been observed in more northerly locations across Europe and by 2020s, it has reached as far north as Belgium, Czechia, Poland, and Ukraine.[2][6][7] Its spread is likely connected to climate change.[6]

See also

References

  1. "Lamprodila festiva (Linnaeus, 1767)". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2019-11-23.
  2. Keszthelyi, Sándor; Somfalvi-Tóth, Katalin (2024-05-10). "A story of becoming a horticultural threat, cypress jewel beetle Lamprodila festiva (Coleoptera, Buprestidae): analytical approach of its European escalation based on bibliographical sources". Ecologica Montenegrina. 73: 54–71. doi:10.37828/em.2024.73.6. ISSN 2336-9744.
  3. Bunescu, Horia; Florian, Teodora (2019-11-15). "The jewel beetle Lamprodila (Palmar) festiva Linné, 1767, a new invasive urban pest of Cupressaceae in Cluj area (Romania) (Coleoptera: Buprestidae)". Fragmenta Entomologica. 51 (2): 241–246. doi:10.13133/2284-4880/366. ISSN 2284-4880.
  4. Volkovitsh, M. G.; Karpun, N. N. (2017-07-01). "A new invasive species of buprestid beetles in the Russian fauna: Lamprodila (Palmar) festiva (L.) (Coleoptera, Buprestidae), a pest of Cupressaceae". Entomological Review. 97 (4): 425–437. Bibcode:2017EntRv..97..425V. doi:10.1134/S0013873817040042. ISSN 1555-6689.
  5. "Lamprodila festiva". AGES. Retrieved 2026-05-11.
  6. "Juniper jewel beetle Lamprodila festiva (Linnaeus, 1767) – a new, serious pest in the area of Rzeszów". University of Rzeszów. 2025-10-17. Retrieved 2026-05-11.
  7. Ruicănescu, Adrian; Stoica, Adrian-Ilie (2019-07-31). "The distribution and behaviour studies on a new invasive Buprestid species, Lamprodila festiva (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) in Romania". Travaux du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle "Grigore Antipa". 62 (1): 43–56. Bibcode:2019TMNHN..62...43R. doi:10.3897/travaux.62.e38488. ISSN 2247-0735.