Bug FAQArgus Tortoise Beetle
Chelymorpha cassidea · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Chrysomelidae
Source: Wikipedia
Adult Argus tortoise beetles are about a centimeter long and look like tiny turtles or ladybugs. They feed on the leaves of many plants such as milkweed, raspberry, corn and sweet potato, and can defoliate whole plants. You’ll find them across North America and the Caribbean in meadows, roadsides and similar open areas.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The beetle’s shell resembles a small turtle and it is often mistaken for a ladybug.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults measure between 9 and 12 mm in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It lives in meadows and along roadsides throughout North America. It is also present in the Caribbean region.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
It eats foliage of plants such as milkweed, raspberry, corn and sweet potato. Heavy feeding can strip an entire plant of its leaves.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Females lay clusters of 15-30 eggs on leaf surfaces. The eggs hatch in about ten days. Larvae develop for roughly three weeks before becoming pupae.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
They spend the winter as pupae and emerge as adults in mid-summer.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Its natural range includes both the Caribbean and North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
Its appearance is similar to a small turtle and also to a ladybug.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 45 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Texas, Illinois, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Florida, North Carolina, Ohio.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What plants do Argus tortoise beetles eat?
They feed on the leaves of milkweed, raspberry, corn and sweet potato, and can strip whole plants.
Source: Wikipedia
Where are Argus tortoise beetles found?
They occur across North America and the Caribbean, especially in meadows and along roadsides.
Source: Wikipedia
How do Argus tortoise beetles reproduce?
Females lay clusters of 15-30 eggs on leaves; the eggs hatch in about ten days and the larvae become pupae after nearly three weeks.
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/Chelymorpha_cassidea
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.