Chlorocala africana is a species of flower beetle belonging to the family Scarabaeidae.

Chlorocala africana
Chlorocala africana africana
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Coleoptera
Family: Scarabaeidae
Genus: Chlorocala
Species:
C. africana
Binomial name
Chlorocala africana
(Drury, 1773)
Synonyms
  • Scarabaeus africanus Drury, 1773
  • Smaragdesthes africana (Drury, 1773)
  • Chlorocala africana subsuturalis (Kraatz, 1891)

Description

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Chlorocala africana can reach a length of about 19–24 millimetres (0.75–0.94 in). This species is the most common of the genus Chlorocala. It has an elongated body with various shades of iridescent green, red or purple colours that can also show reflectance in the near-infrared range of the spectrum,[1] and this variation has led many authors to describe numerous subspecies of doubtful taxonomic validity.

Distribution

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This species occurs in the afrotropical region (Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Tanzania, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo).

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References

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  1. ^ Mielewczik, Michael; Liebisch, Frank; Walter, Achim; Greven, Hartmut (2012). "Near-Infrared (NIR)-Reflectance in Insects – Phenetic Studies of 181 Species" (PDF). Entomologie heute. 23: 183–215.