Leucopholis Djean, 1833

Sub family: Melolonthinae / Tribe: Leucopholini / Genus: Leucopholis

Large ovoid/cylindrical beetles. Body length 21-38mm. Body colour ranging from grey, yellow, brown, reddish brown to black. Scales present over the body, varying in size and shape. Clypeus rounded to emarginate. Labrum deeply bi-lobed. Antennae with 10 segments, and a 3-segmented lamellate club. Prosternal process present, anteriorly ovoid to spindle-shaped, usually flattened and glabrous. Mesometasternal process present and sometimes very large, extending in front of mesocoxae and commonly glabrous. Metepisternum densely covered in scales, with setae also present near anterior margins. Metasternum more sparsely scaled and setose laterally, medially glabrous with only scattered scales. Elytra commonly with an apical knob, sometimes quite prominent. Tarsal claws with a median tooth.

There are around 50 species of Leucopholis, though little information is available for most.

The genus can be readily confused with Lepidiota, due to overlapping features and possible widespread misplaced identifications within institutions. Species of Leucopholis are said to possess scales over the entirety of the body, a mesometasternal process and a flattened prosternal process. The presence or absence of body scales is variable for Lepidiota, and the mesometasternal process, while absent in all Australian Lepidiota, appears to occasionally be present in exotic Lepidiota species from South East Asia. Calcetas and Aldorada (2019) note some separating features for Leucopholis and Lepidiota but they are not always realiable for species found outside of the Philippines. Further work needs to be undertaken to provide clearer delineating features between the genera.  

Species level identification usually requires male genitalia examination.

Larvae of Leucopholis are root feeders, with some species significant pests of sugarcane, coffee, arecanut, rice, maize and coconut. Larval development can take 1-2 years. Adult beetles emerge after heavy rains and are active at dusk or at night. Some adults indiscriminately feed on leaves of crops such as mango, cashew and hibiscus. L. zollantans has been recorded heavily feeding on Mango flowers in Indonesia but not touching leaves.

Leucopholis are absent from Australia. They are found in the Oriental region, from India and across South East Asia.

Barrion, A.T., Litsinger, J.A.  1994. Taxonomy of rice insect pests and their arthropod parasites and predators. Pp.  13–359.  In:  Henrichs  E.A. (ed.):  Biology  and  management  of  rice  insects. Wiley Eastern Limited, New Delhi, 779 pp.

Calcetas, O.A., Adorada, J.R. 2019. Taxonomic review of the genus Leucopholis Dejean, 1833 (Coleoptera: Scarbaeidae: Melolonthinae: Leucopholini) in the Philippines. Zootaxa 4232 (1), 085-103.

Mahadeva Swamy, H.M., Ramasamy, A., Kalleshwaraswamy, C.M., Adarsh, S.K. 2019. Arecanut white grubs Leucopholis species (Melolonthinae: Scarabaeidae: Coleoptera) morphological, molecular identification and phylogenetic analysis. Journal of Asia-Pacific Entomology, vol 22- 3. 880-888.

Prathibha, P.S., Kumar, A.R.V., Subaharan, K. 2013. Ethology of coconut root grub chafer Leucopholis coneophora Burmeister (Melolonthinae: Scarabaeidae). International Journal of Agriculture and Foot Science Technology. Vol 4 (2). 24-29.