Podontia is a genus of flea beetles in the family Chrysomelidae. They belong in the Blepharida-group of flea beetles.
Description They are one of the largest representatives of flea beetles and with Podontia lutea adults being around 2 centimeters long, it is reputed that it is the largest flea beetle species in the world. They are distinguished from other genera in the Blepharida-group by their bifurcate prosternum, saddle-shaped mesosternum and strongly inwardly curved bifid tarsal claws.
Larval defense In Podontia (along with some other related genera) larvae retain their feces directly on the dorsum (upside). This coating acts as a deterrent from predators such as ants. The fecal coat may also possibly serve to moderate body temperature or to reduce water loss although it has not been proven yet.
Species Species include:
Podontia affinis (Gröndal, 1808) Podontia congregata Baly, 1865 Podontia dalmani Baly, 1865 Podontia flava Baly, 1865 Podontia jalur Mohamedsaid, 1989 Podontia laosensis Scherer, 1969 Podontia lutea (Olivier, 1790) Podontia quatuordecimpunctata (Linnaeus, 1767) Podontia rufocastanea Baly, 1865
Former species: Podontia basalis Baly, 1862: moved to Neoblepharella (formerly Blepharella) Podontia evanida Baly, 1865 moved to Calotheca Podontia marmorata Baly, 1865 moved to Calotheca Podontia nigrotessellata Baly, 1865 moved to Calotheca Podontia pitalohita (Maulik, 1926): synonym of Podontia rufocastanea Baly, 1865 Podontia reticulata Baly, 1865 moved to Calotheca Podontia sacra Baly, 1865 moved to Calotheca Podontia soriculata (Swartz, 1808): moved to Paropsides Podontia vittata Baly, 1862: moved to Calotheca
See also List of flea beetle genera
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