The Chrysochroina CAST. is a large (approx. 400 known species – some 3% of the World buprestid fauna – in 13 genera) subtribe inhabiting almost all tropical and subtropical areas of the Old World. The taxon comprises big or at least medium-sized, often splendidly colourful species, many of which are rather common; moreover, larvae develop in wood of living forest- or orchardtrees including those of considerable economic importance, while size and attractive appearance of adults attract the interest of not only buprestid specialists but also "general nature lovers" and even provoke mass collecting for commercial (jewellery, "souvenirs") purposes. And none the less they have never been subject of comprehensive phylogenetic or zoogeographic study, and even the last revision (Kerremans 1908) and catalogue (Obenberger 1926) have been despairingly outdated; as the result, taxonomic structure remains poorly understood, available distributional data inexact and frequently erroneous, while knowledge about bionomy and phylogenetic relationships are almost totally lacking.
The present book – a taxonomic, biogeographic and evolutionary revision of the subtribe at the genus-subgenus level and of its "central" genus, Chrysochroa DEJ. (sensu novo), at that of species and subspecies – is an attempt to fill some of these gaps in our knowledge.