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Types of Beetles Rock the Garden

October 27th, 2009 Posted in Beetles & Ladybugs

When I say “beetles,” what comes to mind? Cars? Music?

Too bad those are the beetles I’m talking about, but mine are much cooler.

I’m talking about the insect.

There are over 30,000 types of beetles on the face of the Earth, so naturally, I cant educate you on all of them. I’ll do my best with the one’s you most likely have heard of.

• Ladybug
• Fireflies
• Scarab Beetles
• Leaf Beetles
• Weevil

Ladybugs

Needing little introduction, the ladybug’s round red and black polka-dotted body is recognized across North America

There are over 5,000 species of ladybugs around the world.

These friendly little bugs are rumored to bring good luck if they land on you, but they bring better luck to your garden, where they hunt pests like aphids.

Fireflies

These beetles have long thin bodies, but are most known for their incandescent glow.

The light emitted by their abdomen, used primarily for mating, lasts about 5-6 seconds while the males fly up. the light goes out when flying down.

Females on the ground respond with their own light once the males light goes out.

Each species has its own light pattern, and females of other species will sometimes fake signals to lure and kill males of other species in order to expand their own population.

Scarab Beetles

These beetles are occasionally problematic. Grubs feed on roots of plants, including grass, and adults feed on leaves of many ornamental plants.

Many infamous beetles fit into this group, including June beetles, Japanese beetles, and dung beetles.

These beetles can get to enormous sizes. The elephant beetle, which is also in this group, can get up to 6 inches long (including the horn).

Leaf Beetles

With over 35,000 species, 1,500 in North America, this group is one of the largest in the beetle in the world.

Their oval-elongated bodies come in a variety of colors, and they can cause significant damage to the plants they feed on.

Adults typically feed on leaves and flowers, while larvae feed on plant roots.

Common leaf beetles include the elm leaf beetle, corn rootworms, and tick beetles, who’s legs are modified for jumping.

Weevil

Weevils, which cause hundreds of millions of dollars of crop damage every year, are infamous for their attack on U.S. cotton fields in the 1920s.

They are the most abundant type of beetle, compiling around 48,000 species worldwide.

Weevils are most easily recognized for their snout-shaped mouths, designed to bore into plants. Acorn weevils mouths are sometimes longer than their body

Weevils antennae grow off their mouth parts.

If you’ve got beetles (of any kind) floating around (their wings are strong enough to effectively fly), try some EcoSMART. Our safe pest control products are designed to fight all kinds of home and garden bugs. Made with natural ingredients, it kills bugs and keeps them away, all without harming you and your family.