It has been released as an agent of biological pest control against the weedy plant in Florida and other parts of the United States.

The ventral abdomen is somewhat transparent, and during its reproductive season the internal sex organs become visible: white oviducts in the female and orange testes in the male.

[1] In Florida, diapause occurs in December through March, during which time the adult is dormant and hidden in leaf litter.

The female lays single eggs on the leaves of the tropical soda apple plant.

[2] The main host plant of the beetle is the tropical soda apple (Solanum viarum), a prickly shrub in the nightshade family.

[1] It reduces the cattle carrying capacity of pasture land, costing ranchers millions of dollars in Florida alone.

The injury facilitates the entry of pathogens and causes stress to the plant, reducing its growth and fruit production.

[8] This tropical beetle cannot develop where cold temperatures occur, so its establishment farther north will be limited.

A number of parasitoid wasps attack the pupae, including Conura side, Aprostocetus cassidis, and Brasema sp.

[1] Pathogens that can affect the beetle include the parasitic neogregarine protozoan Mattesia oryzaephili and a microsporidian of the genus Nosema.