Temperate-outlier
Guides
Blepharida rhois
Sumac Flea Beetle
Blepharida rhois, the sumac flea beetle, is a North American flea beetle notable for its specialized diet on Rhus (sumac) plants and distinctive larval defense mechanism. Adults possess enlarged metafemora enabling catapult jumps to escape predators. Larvae construct fecal shields containing plant-derived defensive compounds. This species represents an outlying distribution within its genus, which is otherwise tropical.