A variety of insects, including several species of beetles, can be found in any garden.
While some of these beetles can be dangerous and harm plants and crops, others are helpful to the garden ecosystem and help control pest populations.
This post will help you recognize brown (and similar colored) beetles that have white or black stripes, like the apple tree borer, false potato beetle, ten-lined june beetle, and others.
We will also explain these beetles in detail, talk about how they affect crops and gardens, and provide you advice on what to do if they start to cause problems.
It is essential to understand the function of each species of beetle in order to keep your garden healthy.
This article attempts to provide you with clear guidance on how to handle these beetles in your garden.
Brown Beetles with White Stripes: Ten-lined June Beetles (Polyphylla decemlineata)
Ten-lined June Beetles, also known as Polyphylla decemlineata, are a species of beetle that can be found in North America.
These beetles are known for their distinctive appearance, with ten black lines running down their elytra or wing covers.
They are typically active during the summer months and are attracted to lights at night.
Ten-lined June Beetles are considered pests in some areas as they can cause damage to crops and gardens.
They feed on the roots of various plants and can be particularly destructive to grass and ornamental plants.
Control measures are often implemented to manage their populations and minimize the damage they can cause.
Round headed Apple Tree Borer (Saperda candida)
The Round-headed Apple Tree Borer (Saperda candida) is a species of longhorn beetle that is a widespread pest that attacks apple trees.
The adult beetle is light olive brown with two conspicuous white stripes running the length of the body, and is just over 2 cm long.
The larvae are pale yellowish white, approximately 2.5 cm long, with a dark brown head and black mandibles.
They feed beneath the outer bark of the stem, and tunnel across the ‘veins’ of the tree, breaking the upward and downward flow of xylem and phloem, the water and liquid food a tree needs to have in all of its parts to survive.
Free-flowing sap can sometimes also be seen at entry points, signs of the tree losing its nutrients. Larvae can remain inside the tree for years while they grow and develop.
Many larvae in one tree can cause it to weaken and die via starvation or infection.
If you encounter Round-headed Apple Tree Borers and wish to manage them, you can try the following methods:
- Cultural control: Water newly planted trees until roots are established. Maintain tree vitality with standard cultural practices.
- Chemical control: Spray a residual insecticide on the base of newly planted trees in June, if adults are active.
False Potato beetle (Leptinotarsa juncta)
The False Potato beetle (Leptinotarsa juncta) is a beetle found primarily in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States, with its distribution extending to Maine.
It is a member of the leaf beetle family Chrysomelidae, genus Leptinotarsa.
The adult beetle is typically 0.3 to 0.4 inches (9mm to 11mm) in size and has a shiny black and white striped back, with one of the white bands replaced with a brown one.
It also has a brown pronotum marked with two distinct black dashes and a few small black dots.
The larva has a humped back with a pale white coloration and dark spots on both sides arranged in a single row.
The pupa appears oval with an orangish body, taking about 6 days to mature. The eggs hatch in approximately 5 days after being laid, feeding on the host plant’s leaves.
False Potato beetles feed on solanaceous weeds such as horsenettle, Solanum carolinense, and other solanaceous plants such as species of ground cherry or husk tomato, Physalis spp., and bittersweet, Solanum dulcamara.
However, no growth and reproduction occurs when feeding on the potato, Solanum tuberosum.
False Potato beetles are not regarded as harmful pests like their close cousin, the Colorado potato beetle.
They cause defoliation, with the older larvae responsible for most of the feeding damage caused to the plants.
If you encounter False Potato beetles and wish to manage them, you can try squishing them manually or use common pesticide options like Pyganic, a pyrethrin made from an extract from the Chrysanthemum plant.
Colorado Potato beetles (Leptinotarsa decemlineata)
The Colorado Potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) is a major pest of potato crops and is native to the Rocky Mountains . It is a member of the leaf beetle family Chrysomelidae, genus Leptinotarsa .
The adult beetle is about 10 mm (3/8 in) long, with a bright yellow/orange body and five bold brown stripes along the length of each of its elytra.
The larvae are orange-pink in color with a large, 9-segmented abdomen, black head, and prominent spiracles, and may measure up to 15 mm (0.59 in) in length in their final instar stage.
Colorado Potato beetles feed on the leaves and terminal growth of their host plants, which can cause complete defoliation and lead to a large yield loss .
If you encounter Colorado Potato beetles and wish to manage them, you can try the following methods:
- Cultural control: Crop rotation, planting early, and destroying crop residues can help reduce the population of Colorado Potato beetles .
- Biological control: Use of natural predators like ladybugs, lacewings, and ground beetles can help control the population of Colorado Potato beetles .
- Chemical control: Pesticides like neonicotinoids, pyrethroids, and carbamates can be used to control the population of Colorado Potato beetles .
Striped Cucumber Beetle (Acalymma vittatum)
The Striped Cucumber Beetle (Acalymma vittatum) is a serious agricultural pest of plants in the family Cucurbitaceae in eastern North America.
The beetle is about 5.25 mm long and 1.3 mm wide, with a brown or black head, black abdomen, and yellow prothorax.
The most prominent coloration is its brownish-yellow elytra covering the whole abdomen, intersected by three black lines running longitudinally.
They have a striped appearance, along with slender, long antennae.
The lifecycle of the Striped Cucumber Beetle begins with unmated adults overwintering under organic debris in hedgerows and field margins surrounding plots of land that were cultivated with cucurbit crops.
Adults emerge in the spring when soil temperatures reach 13°C (55°F), and feed on pollen and foliage of alternative host plants, such as willow, apple, hawthorn, goldenrod, and aster, when cucurbits are unavailable.
When cucurbit seedlings are transplanted or emerge, adults move to these preferred hosts to feed and mate.
Adults initially colonize field edges and spread throughout the crop over the course of the growing season.
Striped cucumber beetle adults form large aggregations on individual plants in the spring to mate. Eggs are then laid at the base of plant stems, below the soil surface.
Following the eclosion of eggs, larvae move down to the roots to feed, pupate in the soil, and subsequently emerge as the next generation of adults.
Depending on latitude and climate, the striped cucumber beetle may complete one to three generations per year.
The Striped Cucumber Beetle feeds on the blossoms of flowering plants, mate, and lay eggs in the soil at the base of host plants.
Crops affected by larval and adult feeding include cucumber, cantaloupe, summer and winter squashes, gourd, pumpkin, and watermelon.
The damage caused by these beetles is observed in the form of defoliation of the host plants.
Applying a heavy mulch of straw, leaves, or grass clippings around established plants may help reduce striped cucumber beetle attacks.
At the end of the season, destroy or bury crop debris (vines, leaves, remaining fruits) to deprive adults of overwintering spots.
Pesticides application can protect the plant and prevent future outbreaks. Organic pest control options include delayed planting, covering plants with row covers that allow light and rain, use of sticky kaolin clay, planting of trap or decoy crops, and manual removal.
Three-lined Potato Beetle (Lema daturaphila)
The Three-lined Potato Beetle (Lema daturaphila) is a species of beetle in the family Chrysomelidae, originally from Central and North America, but has spread elsewhere.
Adult beetles are 7-8 mm long and have a bright orange-yellow coloration with three distinctive black stripes running lengthwise along their mustard-yellow wing coverings.
Larvae are slug-like with black heads and cover themselves with their own excrement, probably as a natural defense against predation.
Three-lined potato beetles are found on plants in the family Solanaceae and are often agricultural pests to crops.
They are commonly found on tomatillo (Physalis ixocarpa), which they can severely damage. They also feed on tomato and potato plants, but far less frequently.
They can also infest sacred datura. The larvae hatch in late June or July, feed on their host plant, and are often found in groups.
If you encounter Three-lined Potato Beetles and wish to manage them, you can try the following methods:
- Cultural control: Eliminating nearby weeds in the potato family can help reduce the problem, especially Physalis, which is called husk tomato or groundcherry. Spunbonded row covers or other netting material can be helpful to exclude the beetles, provided they are placed before the beetles arrive, and you have rotated crops.
- Mechanical control: An effective and convenient management technique for small-scale production is simply hand removing the larvae and placing them in soapy water.
- Chemical control: Products with effective active ingredients include permethrin and esfenvalerate.
Pigweed Flea beetles (Disonycha glabrata)
The Pigweed Flea Beetle (Disonycha glabrata) is a common pest found in US farms, primarily known for attacking amaranth plants.
However, it is also helpful as it keeps the population of pigweed plants down.
The adult beetle is typically 0.1 inches to 0.2 inches (3mm to 7mm) in size and has a black and yellow striped appearance with a red pronotum marked with a black dot at the center.
The larvae are rough-skinned with a grayish-white body, marked with fleshy tubercles with a black tuft of hair on top. They go through a three-instar stage.
Pigweed Flea Beetles feed on the leaves of pigweeds, amaranth, beets, spinach, and Swiss chard, making small, round holes.
Larvae also feed on foliage causing significant damage. Continuous infestation could result in distorted growth in the leaves, hampering the plant’s overall development.
If you encounter Pigweed Flea Beetles and wish to manage them, you can try the following methods:
- Cultural control: Growing certain strong-smelling plants in the garden that tend to repel flea beetles, such as catnip (Nepeta cataria), can help reduce the problem. Placing row covers over your garden crops can also help.
- Mechanical control: An effective and convenient management technique for small-scale production is simply hand removing the larvae and placing them in soapy water.
- Chemical control: Foliar sprays of spinosad, permethrin, or pyrethrin can be applied per label directions, as needed.
Cottonwood Leaf beetles (Chrysomela scripta)
The Cottonwood Leaf Beetle (Chrysomela scripta) is a member of the leaf beetle family Chrysomelidae, and is one of the most economically-important pests of managed cottonwood, aspen, and some poplar and willow species.
The adult beetles are 6 mm (1/4 inch) long with a black head and thorax and clavate antenna.
They also possess yellow or reddish margins on the thorax. However, the orange patterns vary among the adults. The elytra are yellowish with broken black stripes.
In most cases, the male is considerably smaller than the female.
The Cottonwood Leaf Beetle passes through four stages during its life cycle: an egg stage, a larval stage, a pupal stage, and an adult stage.
The insect produces two or more generations per year. The adults overwinter in bark crevices, leaf litter, and other debris.
As soon as spring leaf growth occurs, the Cottonwood Leaf Beetle moves from under the bark, litter, or forest debris to the host trees to feed on the leaves and twigs. The beetle feeds most often on immature buds.
Leaf beetles can complete their entire holometabolous life cycle on cottonwood if food is available.
The Cottonwood Leaf Beetle feeds on the leaves of willow, poplar, and alder throughout North Carolina.
The beetle severely attacks willow, aspens, and alders in the eastern half of the U.S.
Although it does not present a serious pest problem in forests, often it is a severe pest of urban ornamental trees.
This leaf feeder has several generations each year, may cause extensive leaf loss, and can consequently reduce stem volume up to 70%.
If you encounter Cottonwood Leaf Beetles and wish to manage them, you can try the following methods:
- Cultural control: Weed management is a basic agronomic practice that can help suppress this pest. This should be done before winter to reduce Cottonwood Leaf Beetle adult survival. The use of commercial varieties that are resistant to defoliation is critical.
- Biological control: There have been reports of natural enemies that attack Cottonwood Leaf Beetle.
- Chemical control: Cottonwood Leaf Beetles are mainly managed using chemical insecticides. Apply chlorpyrifos for the control of Cottonwood Leaf Beetle adults and larvae.
Diaprepes Root Weevil (Diaprepes abbreviatus)
The Diaprepes Root Weevil (Diaprepes abbreviatus) is a species of weevil that is native to the Caribbean, where it is one of the most economically important pests.
It was first reported in Florida in 1964 from a nursery near Apopka and has since spread over a large area of central and southern Florida where it is damaging to citrus, ornamental plants, and some other crops.
It is estimated that Diaprepes abbreviatus causes about 70 million dollars in damage annually in Florida.
The adult weevils vary in length from 0.95 to 1.90 cm (3/8 to 3/4 inch). They are black, and overlaid by minute white, red orange, and/or yellow scales on the elytra (wing covers).
These scales are often rubbed off of the tops of ridges on the elytra giving the appearance of black stripes on a light colored background.
Adults emerging from pupae in the soil are armed with a pair of deciduous mandibles which break off as they tunnel through the soil to get above ground. Scars at the site where the deciduous mandibles break off are visible under a microscope.
The Diaprepes Root Weevil feeds on the roots of plants, causing significant damage to the plant.
The larvae feed on roots throughout the year, and as the neonate larvae grow larger, they feed on different parts of the root system.
The neonates feed on the smaller fibrous roots, while the older larvae feed on the structural roots.
If you encounter Diaprepes Root Weevils and wish to manage them, you can try the following methods:
- Cultural control: Weed management is a basic agronomic practice that can help suppress this pest. The use of commercial varieties that are resistant to defoliation is critical.
- Chemical control: Apply chlorpyrifos for the control of Diaprepes Root Weevil adults and larvae.
Please note that the use of pesticides should be done with caution and as a last resort, as it can have harmful effects on non-target organisms and the environment.
Analeptura lineola
Analeptura lineola is a species of beetle in the family Cerambycidae that is found throughout the eastern United States and Canada.
The adult beetle is about 9.6 mm (0.38 in) long for males and 8.8 mm (0.35 in) long for females, with a brown coloration and four black stripes on their pronotum.
They are anthophilous species, feeding on flower nectar as an adult.
In the larval stage, this species bores into the bases of decaying woody plants, including red maple, chestnut, hazelnut, cherry, basswood, viburnum, and laurel.
Analeptura lineola is not considered a harmful pest. Therefore, there are no management techniques required to control this species.
Striped Blister beetles (Epicauta vittata)
The Striped Blister beetles (Epicauta vittata) is a species of beetle in the family Meloidae, the blister beetles.
It is native to eastern North America, including eastern Canada and the eastern United States. It is known commonly as the striped blister beetle and the old-fashioned potato beetle.
It is known as an agricultural pest.
The adult beetle is 9 to 17 millimeters long. It is long and slender, with a hairy, punctate body. The thorax is narrower than the head and abdomen.
It is black and yellow, its color pattern varying across its geographical range. It has two black spots on the head, two black stripes on the thorax, and two or three black stripes on each elytron.
Beetles from northern populations have two elytral stripes, and southern beetles have three.
The larva, which is a triungulin, changes in appearance as it develops. The new larva is whitish and has long legs that allow it to be mobile.
During this more mobile stage, it parasitizes a grasshopper egg case. From there, it becomes a sedentary grub. When it becomes a sedentary grub it darkens to a reddish-brown color with darker bands, and the legs shrink.
There are one or two generations per year, with peak abundance of adults in the summer, or slightly earlier in more hospitable climate types.
The adult female produces eggs about every 10 days. It deposits them in masses of 100 to 200 in a tubular chamber a few centimeters deep in the soil, then covers them.
The eggs are whitish and about 2 millimeters long. They hatch within 16 days. The functional legs of the new larva allow it to seek its food, the egg of a grasshopper.
As it feeds and develops at its food source, its legs become reduced.
The Striped Blister Beetle feeds on a variety of crop plants, including beans, beet, carrot, cabbages, corn, eggplant, pea, potato, radish, spinach, squash, sweet potato, tomato, turnip, clovers, soybean, and alfalfa.
It is considered to be one of the most problematic of the pest blister beetles in its range. It feeds voraciously, prefers crop plants, damages fruits, and forms swarms that travel en masse.
If you encounter Striped Blister Beetles and wish to manage them, you can try the following methods:
- Cultural control: Areas where clusters of Striped Blister Beetles are found can be left unharvested, or sprayed with a “spot-treatment” insecticide. Be aware of the pre-harvest intervals of insecticides used near alfalfa harvest.
- Mechanical control: Handpicking the beetles and dropping them into a bucket of soapy water is an effective way to control small populations.
- Chemical control: Insecticides like carbaryl, cyfluthrin, and permethrin can be used to control Striped Blister Beetles.
Goldenrod Leaf Miner beetle (Microrhopala vittata)
The Goldenrod Leaf Miner beetle (Microrhopala vittata) is a species of leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. It is found in North America.
Adults emerge in April, and females lay their eggs in clusters of two to four and cover them in frass.
The grub-like larvae live between the two epidermal layers of a goldenrod leaf, feeding on the tissue between.
Adults chew the leaves rather than mine, and etch linear trails in the upper surface of the goldenrod leaf.
Goldenrod Leaf Miner beetles are not considered harmful pests.
Locus Leaf-miner beetles (Odontota dorsalis)
The Locust Leaf Miner beetle (Odontota dorsalis) is a species of leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae.
The adult beetle is about ¼ inch long, small, elongate, flat beetles. The head is black and the wing covers are orange with a broad black or brown stripe down the center.
The wing covers are deeply pitted and have three long ridges each. Full-grown larvae are yellowish, flat, and slightly longer than adults.
Locust leafminers have one or two generations per year. Locust leafminers overwinter as beetles in bark crevices and leaf litter.
They emerge in spring about the time leaves start to unfold to feed on the lower leaf surfaces where they also lay eggs.
The eggs overlap like shingles in groups of three to five and are cemented together by excrement. Upon hatching, the tiny new larvae feed inside that leaflet.
Later the larvae leave to mine other leaflets. One larva may mine several leaflets before it matures. Larvae pupate within the translucent mines in July. There are two generations per year.
Several parasites and predators attack the locust leafminer, which may explain why it does not maintain large populations in one area for long.
Locust leafminer adult beetles are yellowish and flat. Locust leafminer eggs are laid on the undersides of leaves. Locust leafminer larvae are usually found inside their mines.
Locust leafminer damage resembles frost or drought damage. These bugs are translucent and whitish but soon turn brown. They prefer to mine the leaves of black locust but they have been reported from honey locust and a few other trees as well.
Outbreaks of this leafminer occur almost every year throughout the range of black locust, but seldom affect the same trees for more than a couple of years.
Sometimes the damage is quite noticeable with acres of black locusts turning brown by mid summer.
If trees are severely defoliated by locust leafminers and other stress factors are present, some trees may even die.
Ragweed Leaf Beetle (Ophraella communal)
The Ragweed Leaf Beetle (Ophraella communa) is a species of leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae.
It is native to North America and feeds almost exclusively on leaves and flowers of the family Asteraceae, tribe Heliantheae, with a marked predilection for common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia), which is invasive in Europe and Asia.
The beetle can reach a length of 3.4–4.1 millimeters (0.13–0.16 in) in males and 3.9–4.3 millimeters (0.15–0.17 in) in females.
The head is yellowish, with dark brown spots at the back. The body is coarsely punctured. Antennae are dark brown.
Pronotum is yellowish or pale brown, with three black or dark brown spots. Elytra are yellowish or pale brown and show dark brown longitudinal stripes.
Coreopsis Beetle (Calligrapha californica)
The Coreopsis Beetle (Calligrapha californica) is a species of leaf beetle in the family Chrysomelidae.
The adult beetle is about 0.35-0.47 inches (0.9-1.2 cm) long and has varied colors, including black, brown, ivory, orange, red, and yellow.
Their elytrae are covered with a series of black markings in the form of curves, dashes, dots, and lines. The larvae go through four instars and feed on the leaves of the host plant.
The beetles are voracious eaters and will consume and destroy aster family plants like it’s their favorite food.
Coreopsis Beetles are considered harmful pests as they damage plants so quickly that it’s often too late to reach for a chemical control.
If you notice caterpillars in the spring when they begin feeding on coreopsis, Bacillus thuringiensis var. tenebrionis (Btt) is an organic microbiological insecticide that may kill the larvae.
Controlling these beetles is a challenge. Some ways to protect your aster plants from beetle damage include using soapy water, pruning, cleaning up the garden, sticky traps, and insecticidal soap.
Lined Stenolophus beetle (Stenolophus lineola)
The Lined Stenolophus beetle (Stenolophus lineola) is a species of ground beetle in the family Carabidae. The adult beetle is about 0.35-0.47 inches (0.9-1.2 cm) long and has varied colors, including black, brown, ivory, orange, red, and yellow.
Their elytrae are covered with a series of black markings in the form of curves, dashes, dots, and lines. The larvae go through four instars and feed on the leaves of the host plant.
Western Striped Cucumber beetles (Acalymma trivittatum)
The Western Striped Cucumber Beetle (Acalymma trivittatum) is a species of herbivorous beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. The adult beetle is about 0.35-0.47 inches (0.9-1.2 cm) long and has varied colors, including black, brown, ivory, orange, red, and yellow.
Their elytrae are covered with a series of black markings in the form of curves, dashes, dots, and lines.
The larvae feed on the roots of cucurbits, while the adults feed on the foliage, flowers, and pollen of cucurbit species.
If you encounter Western Striped Cucumber Beetles and wish to manage them, you can try the following methods:
- Cultural control: Crop rotation and planting cucurbit crops later in the season can help reduce the problem.
- Chemical control: Insecticides like carbaryl, cyfluthrin, and permethrin can be used to control Western Striped Cucumber Beetles.
Lewi’s Soldier beetle (Chauliognathus lewisi)
The Lewi’s Soldier beetle (Chauliognathus lewisi) is a species of soldier beetle in the family Cantharidae. It is found in North America.
The adult beetle is about 0.35-0.47 inches (0.9-1.2 cm) long and has varied colors, including black, brown, ivory, orange, red, and yellow.
Their elytrae are covered with a series of black markings in the form of curves, dashes, dots, and lines.
Lewi’s Soldier beetles are not considered harmful pests.
Western Corn Rootworm beetles (Diabrotica virgifera)
The Western Corn Rootworm beetle (Diabrotica virgifera) is a species of beetle in the family Chrysomelidae. The adult beetle is about 0.25 inches (6.4 mm) long and is yellowish with a black stripe on each wing cover.
The larvae feed on corn roots, causing significant damage to the plant. Newly hatched larvae are small, less than 0.125 inches (3.2 mm) long, white worms.
Corn rootworms go through three larval instars, pupate in the soil, and emerge as adults in July and August. One generation emerges each year.
Western Corn Rootworms are considered harmful pests and can destroy significant percentages of corn if left untreated. In the United States, current estimates show that 30,000,000 acres (12,000,000 ha) of corn (out of 80 million grown) are infested with corn rootworm.
The United States Department of Agriculture estimates that corn rootworms cause $1 billion in lost revenue each year, including $800 million in yield loss and $200 million in cost of treatment for corn growers.
If you encounter Western Corn Rootworms and wish to manage them, you can try the following methods:
- Crop rotation: Rotating corn with other crops every 3 years minimizes survival and subsequent root damage.
- Early planting: Corn becomes less attractive to adults after pollen shed.
- Soil treatments: Using granular insecticides at the time of planting can effectively reduce corn rootworms.
- Transgenics: Transgenic corn varieties expressing insecticidal proteins from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner (Bt) can be used to reduce corn rootworms.
- Seed treatments: Seed treatments with neonicotinoid insecticides can be used to reduce corn rootworms.
- Adult treatments: Adult treatments with foliar insecticides can be used to reduce corn rootworms.
Dogwood Twig Borers (Oberea tripunctata)
The Dogwood Twig Borer (Oberea tripunctata) is a species of longhorn beetle that is a widespread pest that attacks dogwood trees.
The adult beetle is between 10 and 15 millimeters long and 3 millimeters wide. The head is dark to black and there are three prominent black spots arranged in a triangle on the beetles’ thorax.
The wing covers are a yellowish tan. There is a narrow black line on the inner edge and a broader, darker line on the outer wing on the lateral margin.
There are also two distinct dots right behind the beetle’s head.
The larvae of dogwood twig borers, in their final phase, are yellowish, legless and about 19 millimeters long.
They bore down into the center of the twig, causing wilting leaves on twigs and drooping and girdling of twig tips.
The dogwood twig borer is distributed in the United States of America wherever there are flowering dogwood trees.
They are adaptable and although the bulk of a dogwood twig borer’s diet is obtained from flowering dogwood trees, it can also feed on elm, azalea, and viburnum.
Many species of fruit trees are attacked by the beetle. The beetle usually begins its infestation by attacking individual twigs.
To control the dogwood twig borer, a common practice is to clip infested twigs several inches below the girdle, or the infected part of the twig, and then destroy it.
This is usually done after wilting occurs, but before adult emergence during spring. This method is commonly recommended and has proved very effective at controlling the population of the dogwood twig borer.
Another technique of eliminating the beetle is to spray with recommended insecticides before budding of the infected tree or shrub.
Please note that the species is considered a minor pest of the dogwood. It usually does not cause any major problems, unlike the dogwood borer (Synanthedon scitula).
Conclusion
In conclusion, some brown beetles with black strips can be pests, while others might be completely harmless.
We’ve discussed various species from ten lined june beetles to pigweed flea beetles. Identifying these beetles is important so that you can take the right course of action for them.
Thank you for reading.
Reader Emails
Over the years, our website, whatsthatbug.com has received hundreds of letters and some interesting images asking us about brown beetles with white . Scroll down to have a look at some of them.
Letter 1 – Round Headed Apple Tree Borer
I skimmed this out of our pool today, we live in northeastern PA. Can you help Identify it?
Your beetle is Saperda candida, the Round Headed Apple Tree Borer and you can find information on BugGuide.
Letter 2 – Round Headed Apple Tree Borer
My wife and I have found a bug on our porch, and for the life of us we cannot figure out what it is! It almost looks kind of like a grasshopper head but the body looks like it’s from something else. I will include a picture of it, and have saved it in a glass jar. We are wondering if it is poisonus as we have a four year old child and would not want to see it bite/sting her. Any information would greatly be appreciated. Thanks,
Rob
Hi Rob,
The Round Headed Apple Tree Borer, Saperda candida, is not poisonous.
Letter 3 – Round-Headed Apple Borer
Someone posted a picture of this bug on an online forum I am part of and I’m so intrigued with it, I have to know what it is. It is on a door and looks to be quite big, possibly 6-8 inches long. I’ve searched on the net for a while, but not knowing anything other than it is an insect, hasn’t helped me find anything on it. Hopefully you can lend some insight as to what it is. I believe it was found in Buffalo, NY. Doing a little more investigation, I guess the bug in the picture is the size of a quarter (just a really big zoom). I’d still like to know what it is if you could. Thanks.
Jordan Pulaski
Hi Jordan,
Your beetle is a Round-Headed Apple Borer, Saperda candida, from the Family Cerambycidae. In the larval stage this species is very destructive to apple trees, quince and a few other species.
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