SHADE TREE INSECTS 



57 



beetles feed on the foliage at night and, when abundant, may defoliate large tracts 

 of timber. The group is widely distributed in the United States. 



Description. The beetles are broadh oval with rounded bodies, measuring 

 about \4, to 1 inch in length and \ar> ing from light to dark brown in color. 



The eggs are pearly-white. When first laid they are elongate, measuring about 

 1/10 inch in length, but in about a week they become swollen and almost round. 

 They are deposited in the center of balls of earth in burrows made in the ground. 



The grubs are coiled into a U shape. They have thick, soft bodies with three 

 pairs of legs. The head is brown; the body whitish, with the hind part of the 

 abdomen darker in color. When mature, the larvae are about % to 1 inch in 

 length. The grubs of some other soil-inhabiting beetles of the same family 

 resemble those of Phyllophaga, and may be distinguished only by microscopic 

 examination. 



Each pupa is enclosed in an oval earthen cell in the ground. 



'\%¥^ 



June Beetles or White Grubs 



1. Eggs on earth. 13^X. 



2. Grub. Slightly enlarged. 



3. Pupa in natural earthen cell. Actual size. 



4. Adult beetle. Slightly enlarged. 



Figs.'l, 2, and 3. Courtesy, Bur. Ent. and Plant Quarantine, U. S. Dept. Agr. 



Life History. The complete life cycle of most of the injurious species in 

 northern United States requires three years. In northern Wisconsin two species 

 of June beetles are reported to have four-year life cycles, while in the Southern 

 States 23/^-year cycles have been reported. 



The beetles emerge from the ground in late May and June. At dusk they fly 

 from the ground to near-by trees and feed on the foliage. A little before dawn 



