Bug FAQAir Potato Leaf Beetle
Lilioceris cheni · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Chrysomelidae
Also called: Leaf beetle
The air-potato leaf beetle (Lilioceris cheni) feeds on the invasive air-potato plant and is used in Florida to control that weed. Both the beetle and its host plant are native to Asia.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The air-potato leaf beetle, Lilioceris cheni, belongs to the genus Lilioceris and feeds on air-potato vines.
Source: Wikipedia
Is it a pest in the house?
Biologists released the beetle in Florida in 2012 to help curb the spread of air-potato.
Source: Wikipedia
How to get rid of it
The beetles were introduced in 2012 by Florida biologists as a biological control agent for the invasive air-potato.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Air-potato plants, which the beetle eats, are an invasive weed that grows throughout Florida.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
The beetle’s diet consists of the leaves of the air-potato plant.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Both the beetle and its host plant are originally from Asia.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 7 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Georgia, South Carolina.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: introduced in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
Why are air-potato leaf beetles found in my yard?
They were released in Florida in 2012 to help control the invasive air-potato plant.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Chrysomelidae)
Spotted Cucumber BeetleDiabrotica undecimpunctataDamages trees, gardens or crops
Bean WeevilAcanthoscelides obtectusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Cowpea WeevilCallosobruchus maculatusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Swamp Milkweed Leaf BeetleLabidomera clivicollisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Alder Leaf BeetleAgelastica alniDamages trees, gardens or crops
Dogbane Leaf BeetleChrysochus auratusSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lilioceris_cheni
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-24.