Syagrus (beetle)
Syagrus is a genus of leaf beetles in the subfamily Eumolpinae. They are known from the mainland of Africa. They are often attracted by plants in the family Malvaceae; Syagrus rugifrons and Syagrus calcaratus are pests of cotton. The larvae of Syagrus calcaratus attack the roots of the plant and cause it to wilt.
Many species described from Madagascar were included in Syagrus by Jan Bechyně in the 1940s to 1960s. These species have been transferred to the related genus Pheloticus, restricting Syagrus to the mainland of Africa. Many additional species of Syagrus described from mainland Africa have been transferred to other African Eumolpinae genera such as Afroeurydemus, Microsyagrus and Proliniscus.
Species of Syagrus include the following:Syagrus bodongi Weise, 1905 – "Rhodesia"Syagrus calcaratus – widely distributed across sub-Saharan AfricaSyagrus concoloricornis Pic, 1940 – South Africa: PretoriaSyagrus fuscoaeneus Fairmaire, 1894 – "Senegal"Syagrus inhumeralis Pic, 1936 – Angola: "Osi"Syagrus interstitialis – Angola, Zambia, MozambiqueSyagrus morio Harold, 1877 – central, eastern and southern AfricaSyagrus opacus Jacoby, 1900 – Angola, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South AfricaSyagrus ortobiensis Selman, 1963 – Chad, Sudan, Ethiopia, SomaliaSyagrus perpuncticollis – DR CongoSyagrus puncticollis – Guinea, Sierra Leone, Sudan, DR Congo, Malawi, MozambiqueSyagrus rufipennis Pic, 1940 – Tanzania: "Windi"Syagrus rufobrunneus Lefèvre, 1890 – Zimbabwe, Mozambique, South AfricaSyagrus rugiceps Lefèvre, 1890 – Somalia, Mozambique, South AfricaSyagrus rugifrons Baly, 1878 – Tanzania, South AfricaSyagrus sehranus Aslam, 1968 – Algeria: Adrar des IfoghasSyagrus silfverbergi Selman, 1973 – South Sudan: Equatoria: Torit-KapoetaSyagrus strigaticeps – "Afrique occidentale"Syagrus tristis Jacoby, 1904 – Sudan, Congo, Mozambique, South Africa