| Summary: | The genus <i>Diabrotica</i> has over 400 described species, the majority of them neotropical. However, only three species of neotropical <i>Diabrotica</i> are considered agricultural pests: <i>D. speciosa</i>, <i>D. balteata</i>, and <i>D. viridula</i>. <i>D. speciosa</i> and <i>D. balteata</i> are polyphagous both as adults and during the larval stage. <i>D. viridula</i> are stenophagous during the larval stage, feeding essentially on maize roots, and polyphagous as adults. The larvae of the three species are pests on maize, but <i>D. speciosa</i> larvae also feed on potatoes and peanuts, while <i>D. balteata</i> larvae feed on beans and peanuts. None of these species express a winter/dry season egg diapause, displaying instead several continuous, latitude-mediated generations per year. This hinders the use of crop rotation as a management tool, although early planting can help in the temperate regions of the distribution of <i>D. speciosa</i>. The parasitoids of adults, <i>Celatoria bosqi</i> and <i>Centistes gasseni</i>, do not exert much control on <i>Diabrotica</i> populations, or show potential for inundative biocontrol plans. Management options are limited to insecticide applications and Bt genetically modified (GM) maize. Other techniques that show promise are products using <i>Beauveria bassiana</i> and <i>Heterorhabditis bacteriophora</i>, semiochemical attractants for monitoring purposes or as toxic baits, and plant resistance.
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