''Eupales'' is a genus of leaf beetles in the subfamily Eumolpinae. The genus contains only one species, ''Eupales ulema'', which is found in Southeast Europe, mostly in Hungary, the

Balkan Peninsula The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

, and Turkey. ''Eupales'' is recognised as a primitive member of Eumolpinae, and it shares some features with the

Spilopyrinae The Spilopyrinae are a small subfamily of the leaf beetles, or Chrysomelidae. They occur in Australia, New Guinea, New Caledonia and Chile. They were formerly considered a tribe of the subfamily Eumolpinae. The group was elevated to subfamily ran ...

Taxonomy

The genus was originally known as ''Pales'', named in 1836 by the French entomologist Louis Alexandre Auguste Chevrolat in Dejean's ''Catalogue des Coléoptères'', but this name was preoccupied by the fly genus '' Pales'' Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830. The replacement name ''Eupales'' was created by

Édouard Lefèvre Édouard Lefèvre (22 January 183917 June 1894) was a French botanist and later entomologist who specialised in Coleoptera. He became a member of the Entomological Society of France Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of ...

in 1885. ''Floricola'' is an older available name for the genus, created by

Gistel Gistel () is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. Following local government boundary reforms in 1971 and 1977, the municipality has comprised not only Gistel, but also the towns of Moere, Snaaskerke and Ze ...

in 1848; however, almost all authors have used ''Eupales'' in the last 125 years. In Verma ''et al.'' (2005), the genus is placed as the only member of the tribe Eupalini. However, the name "Eupalini" was not explicitly indicated as new, so it is currently considered an unavailable name according to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. In the sixth volume of the ''Catalogue of Palaearctic Coleoptera'' and in Bouchard ''et al.'' (2011), the genus is placed as '' incertae sedis'' within Eumolpinae instead. An application to the

International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN) is an organization dedicated to "achieving stability and sense in the scientific naming of animals". Founded in 1895, it currently comprises 26 commissioners from 20 countries. Orga ...

was sent in 2009 to conserve both the names ''Eupales'' and Eupalini, but the case was never published.

Description

''Eupales ulema'' has an oblong body with a golden metallic green color and a light golden pubescence. It has simple tarsal claws.

Food plants

''Eupales'' has been reported from two species of dogwoods, ''

Cornus mas ''Cornus mas'', commonly known as cornel (also the Cornelian cherry, European cornel or Cornelian cherry dogwood), is a species of shrub or small tree in the dogwood genus ''Cornus'' native to Southern Europe and Southwestern Asia. Description It ...

'' and '' Cornus sanguinea'', as well as other plants such as ''

Pyrus Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the family Rosaceae, bearing the po ...

'' spp. In Hungary, it appears to be restricted to ''Cornus mas''.

References

Eumolpinae Beetles of Europe Monotypic Chrysomelidae genera Taxa named by Édouard Lefèvre {{Eumolpinae-stub