The Colorado potato beetle. Destructive species (Lema trilineata) of leaf beetle (family Chrysomelidae). Less than 0.25 in. (6 mm) long, it is yellow and has three black stripes on its wing covers. Eggs are laid on the underside of a potato leaf, on which both larvae and adults feed. The larvae are camouflaged by excrement the beetles pile on their back. Two generations are produced each year; the second overwinters in the ground in the pupal stage. See also Colorado potato beetle
A small yellow-and-black striped beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) that is a major agricultural pest. or potato bug Leaf beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata, family Chrysomelidae) native to western North America. It began feeding on the leaves of cultivated potatoes when the plants were introduced into western North America, and by 1874 it had become an important and widespread pest. It has a hemispherical body, about 0.4 in. (10 mm) long, and is orange-red or yellow, with black stripes on the wing covers. Depending on climate, potato beetles may produce one to three generations each year