Rice yellow mottle virus (RYMV) is a severe disease of rice in Africa. It is naturally transmitted by several species of beetles. Chaetocnema pulla is widely believed to be an important vector of RYMV in Tanzania. However, the high incidence of RYMV in some rice fields where C. pulla was not seen in large numbers indicated that more vectors of the virus might exist. Transmission studies conducted showed Dactylispa lenta to be a vector of RYMV in Tanzania. This has not been previously known.