Field survey of Cassidinae beetles (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) and their host plants in southern Guangxi, China

Few systematic studies have been conducted on the faunal composition and food web structure of Cassidinae of China. During 2013-2019, we systematically investigated Cassidinae beetles and their host plants in the southern Guangxi. A total of 2,255 Cassidinae individuals from 66 species, 23 genera and ten tribes were collected in southern Guangxi. Most species belonged to the tribe Hispini (23 species, 34.8%), followed by the tribe Gonophorini (13 species, 19.7%), Cassidini (eight species, 12.1%) and Aspidimorphini (six species, 9.1%). The others (16 species) belonged to the tribes Anisoderini, Botryonopini, Callispini, Oncocephalini, Notosacanthini and Leptispini. The tribe Notosacanthini was recorded from Guangxi for the first time. The genera Neownesia (Botryonopini), Gonophora (Gonophorini), Micrispa (Gonophorini), Notosacantha (Notosacanthini) and Prionispa (Oncocephalini) were firstly recorded in Guangxi. In total, we obtained 47 newly-recorded species in southern Guangxi and 33 newly-recorded species in the whole Guangxi, of which, Callispafrontalis Medvedev, 1992 was newly recorded in China. Dactylispafeae Gestro (625 individuals) and D.chinensis Weise (565 individuals) were the most common species. A total of 69 species, 53 genera and 19 families of host plants were identified for Cassidinae in southern Guangxi. Many host plant associations are new records for Cassidinae. Quantitative food web analysis indicated that Cassidinae species in southern Guangxi primarily fed on Poaceae, Convolvulaceae, Cyperaceae and Rosaceae. Generally, the plant-Cassidinae food webs were moderately complex and stable in southern Guangxi. This is the first large contribution to the knowledge of the species composition and host plant diversity of Cassidinae in southern Guangxi.