Knotweed leaf beetle
Gastrophysa polygoni
The knotweed leaf beetle is a tiny, shiny beetle, no longer than a grain of rice. Its wing cases are metallic green and its chest is bright orange. You can spot it in spring and summer.
Lives in
Europe, in gardens, fields and along paths
Length
5 mm (0.2 in)
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. It cannot bite or sting.
What does it eat?
As its name says, it eats the leaves of knotweed plants.
How big is it?
How long is it?
💅small enough to sit on your fingernail🍽️could run across a dinner table in 12 seconds
How big is Knotweed leaf beetle compared to YOU?
Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.
How fast is it?
A garden snail about 0.05 km/h (0.03 mph)
Knotweed leaf beetle about 0.29 km/h (0.18 mph)
A tortoise about 0.3 km/h (0.19 mph)
A person walking about 5 km/h (3.1 mph)
cool stuff
Fun facts
1
It is at most 5 millimetres long.
2
The famous Swedish scientist Carl Linnaeus described it in 1758.
3
It belongs to the leaf beetles, a huge family of plant-eating beetles.
you asked
Most asked questions about Knotweed leaf beetle
?What does the knotweed leaf beetle eat?
The leaves of knotweed plants.
?How big is the knotweed leaf beetle?
It is up to 5 millimetres long.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Gastrophysa polygoni
- Named by
- Linnaeus, 1758
- Group
- Beetles
- Family
- Chrysomelidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Coleoptera > Chrysomelidae
- Lives on
- Europe
Where the facts come from
- Gastrophysa polygoni (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Sanja565658. CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
Bug Wiki honey jar For grown-ups: Bug Wiki is free, with no ads and no tracking. A small tip helps keep it online.Leave a tip
Stag beetle
Hercules beetle
Common glow-worm
Goliath beetle
Cockchafer
Mealworm beetle
Narrow-winged mantis
Common wood-nymph
Small magpie
Lily borer
Soldier
Vestal cuckoo bumblebee_polygoni_03.JPG){kind=link}