Data from: The life history of Chelymorpha alternans (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae) in Panamá

Here we describe an investigation of the life history characteristics, behavior, immature and adult morphologies of the Neotropical tortoise beetle Chelymorpha alternans (Boheman; Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae: Cassidinae) from the Republic of Panamá. Developmental times and behavioral characteristics for individuals maintained under laboratory and field conditions are evaluated. Survival rates of individuals maintained under field and laboratory conditions are compared. A list of convolvulaceous host plants utilized by C. alternans is provided. Empirical studies investigating the biology of C. alternans are reviewed. This study contributes to our knowledge of quantitative and qualitative aspects of this species’ biology. These findings demonstrate that C. alternans is an organism that develops, behaves, and interacts with host plants, much as other tortoise beetles do. Rigorous, multi-year investigation of this ecologically representative species has produced a comparative life history description that expands our knowledge of general Cassidinae and Coleoptera biology. The natural history background, life history descriptions, diet breadth information, and literature review provided in this contribution make a compelling case for continued utilization of C. alternans as a representative tortoise beetle species for a variety of field and laboratory based studies in plant–insect interactions, chemical ecology, natural enemy ecology, and phenotypic trait and diet breadth evolution.本研究详述了一项针对巴拿马共和国新热带区龟甲甲虫异纹龟甲（*Chelymorpha alternans*，Boheman；鞘翅目（Coleoptera）：叶甲科（Chrysomelidae）：龟甲亚科（Cassidinae））的生活史特征、行为、幼体与成体形态的调查工作。本研究评估了实验室与野外饲养条件下该甲虫个体的发育时长与行为特征，对比了两种饲养条件下个体的存活率，并列出了异纹龟甲所利用的旋花科（Convolvulaceae）寄主植物名录。本研究同时综述了针对异纹龟甲生物学特性的各类实证研究，增进了学界对该物种生物学特性定量与定性维度的认知。研究结果表明，异纹龟甲在发育、行为以及与寄主植物的互作模式上，与其他龟甲甲虫类群并无二致。针对这一生态代表性物所长达数年的严谨调查，形成了一套比较生活史描述，拓展了学界对龟甲亚科乃至鞘翅目整体生物学的认知。本研究提供的自然历史背景资料、生活史描述、食性广度相关信息以及文献综述，充分论证了将异纹龟甲作为代表性龟甲甲虫类群，持续应用于植物-昆虫互作、化学生态学、天敌生态学以及表型性状与食性广度演化等多类野外与实验室研究的合理性。