Phosphorus virescens

Phosphorus virescens is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae. It was described by Guillaume-Antoine Olivier in 1795, originally under the genus Cerambix. It has a wide distribution throughout Africa.^[1] It is the only species in the genus Phosphorus.^[2][3][4]

Phosphorus virescens
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Coleoptera
Suborder:	Polyphaga
Infraorder:	Cucujiformia
Family:	Cerambycidae
Subfamily:	Lamiinae
Tribe:	Tragocephalini
Genus:	Phosphorus Thomson, 1857
Species:	P. virescens
Binomial name
Phosphorus virescens (Olivier, 1795)
Synonyms
Tragocephala virescens (Olivier, 1795) Phosphorus robustus Aurivillius, 1914 Prosopocera virescens (Olivier, 1795) Voetia virescens (Olivier, 1795) Cerambix virescens Olivier, 1795 Cerambix angulator Olivier, 1795

The species is known to damage Cola nitida in cultivation where it is known as the Kola tree borer.^[5] Larvae bore through the stems causing death of branches. The yellow coloration on the elytra is fluorescent.^[6]