What is a Colorado potato beetle?
The Colorado potato beetle ( Leptinotarsa decemlineata) is a major potato pest throughout North America. Adults become active in spring, about the same time potato plants emerge from the ground.
What do potatoes beetles eat?
Potato beetles, also known as potato bugs, feed on the leaves of the potato plant. They are also attracted to potato relatives such as tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. Think multiple strategies when you're trying to get rid of potato beetles.
Where do beetles come from?
The beetle is most likely native to the area between Colorado and northern Mexico, and was discovered in 1824 by Thomas Say in the Rocky Mountains. It is found in North America, and is present in every state and province except Alaska, California, Hawaii, and Nevada.
Where did the term “Yankee beetles” originate?
In the 1950s, East Germans called these pests “Yankee beetles” and accused the United States government of dropping them from planes during the Cold War. (There was no evidence to support this claim.) Colorado potato beetles, aka potato bugs, are about 1/4 to 1/2 inch long.
See more
How did Colorado potato beetle spread?
The Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) became a pest when settlers brought potatoes into the Rocky Mountain area, the native habitat of this beetle. The beetle preferred potatoes to its host weed, and now is a serious pest throughout the U.S. and Eastern Canada.
Where do potatoes bugs come from?
Potato Bug OverviewCommon Name(s)Potato bug, Colorado potato beetleScientific Name(s)Leptinotarsa decemlineataFamilyChrysomelidaeOriginOriginated in the United States & MexicoPlants AffectedPotatoes, eggplants, tomatoes, other nightshades and Solanaceae family plants1 more row•Jan 11, 2019
How do you keep Colorado potato beetles away?
Another way to prevent potato beetles is to keep beds free of debris that gives the adults hiding places. Remove old plants each season and till the vegetable bed. Do not plant nightshade plants in the same location each year but rotate to prevent putting them where the insects already live.
Why are Colorado potato beetles a pest?
The common black and yellow-striped "potato bug", a very familiar insect to home gardeners, is the most serious insect pest of potatoes. Both the striped beetle and the black-spotted, red larva feed on potato leaves. Their damage can greatly reduce yield and even kill plants.
How do I get rid of Colorado potato bugs?
Handpicking in small gardens can be effective.Drop adults and larvae in a pail filled with soapy water.Remove or crush the yellowish orange eggs on the underside of leaves.New adult beetles can fly into gardens so be sure to check your potatoes regularly.Handpicking may be less practical in larger gardens.
What attracts potato bugs in the house?
Inspect your gutters on the outside of your home. If they aren't working properly, excessive moisture will accumulate near your home, attracting potato bugs. If your gutters aren't working properly, call a gutter company to repair them.
What is the most effective prevention method for controlling potato beetles?
Straw mulch around the host crop has been shown to reduce beetle numbers. Late planting may cause beetles to leave the field before potatoes emerge, resulting in lower beetle numbers. Flame crops under 3-4 inches high to kill colonizing adult beetles.
Are Colorado potato beetles invasive?
Colorado potato beetle (CPB) is one of the most devastating invasive insects and it is native to North America. It feeds on several wild species of the genus Solamum, such as S. elaeagnifolium and S. rostratum Dunal, and is one of the major pests of potato and eggplant.
Do Colorado potato beetles bite?
Potato bugs have strong jaws that can sink into the skin and cause a moderate amount of pain if they bite you. Luckily, it isn't common to get bitten by potato bugs and they don't inject venom. While pesky, these bugs are naturally shy and will scurry away from humans.
What insecticide kills Colorado potato beetle?
SpinosadFor the larval through adult stages, Spinosad, the active ingredient in Monterey Garden Insect Spray works to control the Colorado Potato Beetle. Beauveria bassiana, the active ingredient in Botanigard, kills both larvae and adults – use either as a soil drench or as a foliar application to the plants.
What is the lifespan of a potato bug?
The four larval instars last a total of 21 days. The larvae feed almost continuously on the leaves of the host plant, stopping only when molting. Larvae drop from the plants and burrow into the soil where they construct a spherical cell and transform into yellowish pupae. This lasts from five to 10 days.
What do potato bugs turn into?
Potato bugs start as pupae, turn into larvae, grow into juveniles, and finally into adults. They don't turn into anything other than the orange and black striped beetle that we have already seen.
Where are potato bugs found?
Potato bugs inhabit areas in the western United States and Mexico. You may not see these unsightly bugs very often as they tend to live underground and usually come out at night.
How do I get rid of potato bugs?
How to Get Rid of Potato Bugs: 11 Steps to End the InfestationCommon Host Plants.Take a Look Each Day.Plant Resistant Cultivars.Protect Your Plants.Use Crop Rotation.Mulch Deeply.Remove Adults By Hand.Remove Eggs by Hand.More items...
What does a potato bug turn into?
Potato bugs start as pupae, turn into larvae, grow into juveniles, and finally into adults. They don't turn into anything other than the orange and black striped beetle that we have already seen.
What causes wireworm in potatoes?
Potato crops planted after long-term grass (more than four years) have always been considered at greatest risk of wireworm attack, as the pest favours undisturbed soil. Populations build and remain constant at an equilibrium under a ley. Probably about 60-70% of long-term grass fields are wireworm infested.
Where did potato beetles come from?
The Colorado potato beetle was first observed in 1811 by Thomas Nuttall and was formally described in 1824 by American entomologist Thomas Say. The beetles were collected in the Rocky Mountains, where they were feeding on the buffalo bur, Solanum rostratum. The genus Leptinotarsa is assigned to the chrysolmelid beetle tribe Doryphorini ...
What is the synonym for the Colorado potato beetle?
Binomial name. Leptinotarsa decemlineata. Say, 1824. Synonyms. Doryphora decemlineata Say, 1824. Stilodes decemlineata. The Colorado potato beetle ( Leptinotarsa decemlineata ), also known as the Colorado beetle, the ten-striped spearman, the ten-lined potato beetle, or the potato bug, is a major pest of potato crops.
Why are beetles on stamps?
L. decemlineata is an iconic species and has been used as an image on stamps because of its association with the recent history of both North America and Europe. For example, in 1956, Romania issued a set of four stamps calling attention to the campaign against insect pests, and it was featured on a 1967 stamp issued in Austria. The beetle also appeared on stamps issued in Benin, Tanzania, the United Arab Emirates, and Mozambique.
How big are potato beetles?
Adult beetles typically are 6–11 mm (0.24–0.43 in) in length and 3 mm (0.12 in) in width. They weigh 50-170 mg. The beetles are orange-yellow in colour with 10 characteristic black stripes on their elytra. The specific name decemlineata, meaning 'ten-lined', derives from this feature. Adult beetles may, however, be visually confused with L. juncta, the false potato beetle, which is not an agricultural pest. L. juncta also has alternating black and white strips on its back, but one of the white strips in the center of each wing cover is missing and replaced by a light brown strip.
What is the predator of Colorado beetles?
Predators. Coleomegilla maculata preying upon Colorado beetle eggs. At least 13 insect genera, three spider families, one phalangid ( Opiliones ), and one mite have been recorded as either generalist or specialized predators of the varying stages of L. decemlineata.
How long do potato beetles lay eggs?
Lifecycle. Colorado potato beetle females are very prolific and are capable of laying over 500 eggs in a 4- to 5-week period. The eggs are yellow to orange, and are about 1 mm (0.039 in) long. They are usually deposited in batches of about 30 on the underside of host leaves.
How many stages are there in the orange beetle?
The beetle larva has four instar stages. The head remains black throughout these stages, but the pronotum changes colour from black in first- and second-instar larvae to having an orange-brown edge in its third-instar. In fourth-instar larvae, about half the pronotum is coloured light brown. This tribe is characterised within the subfamily by round to oval-shaped convex bodies, which are usually brightly coloured, simple claws which separate at the base, open cavities behind the procoxae, and a variable apical segment of the maxillary palp.
Physical Description and Identification
Color: Its body is a bright yellowish-orange, with five distinct black stripes running down each elytra.
Identifying the Damage Caused by Them
Both adult beetles and larvae feed on the foliage of potato plants, stunting the plant’s growth. This can lead to complete loss of the crop.
Did You Know
After World War II, East Germany, then part of the Soviet Union, claimed that these beetles were introduced as part of a scheme by the CIA to create food scarcity. As a result, these beetles were hunted down, even employing children to collect them.
What Do Colorado Potato Beetles Look Like?
While leaf beetles are one of the most colorfully diverse insects in the world, each of these species of beetle generally have such a unique patterning that they can easily be identified by their appearance.
Colorado Potato Beetle Damage
In both adult and larvae form, the Colorado potato beetle is known to chew extensively on foliage, which is unique since it is often the developing larvae that are most harmful to plants while the adults are known to become beneficial.
What Do Colorado Potato Beetles Eat?
The Colorado potato beetle is part of an extensive family of leaf-eating beetles known to feed on just about any fruiting, vegetable, or ornamental crop in North America.
Colorado Potato Beetle Eggs
Adult Colorado potato beetles are hard-shell arthropods with the ability to survive through winter, generally found safe beneath ground foliage near a host plant from the previous year.
How to Get Rid of Colorado Potato Beetle
One of the most effective ways to rid the garden of Colorado potato beetles is to spot them early as eggs or underdeveloped soft-bodied larvae. Like many garden pests, potato beetle eggs are large enough to be spotted and destroyed by hand without any need for sprays or beneficial insects.
Colorado Potato Beetle Pesticide
The Colorado potato beetle is notorious in the garden for being able to quickly adapt and grow tolerances to many pesticides, both organic and conventional. Diluted neem oil spray and BT spray ( Bacillus Thuringiensis) are two organic options that won’t necessarily kill the adults, but will make your host plants less appetizing.
Where do potato beetles live?
The potato beetle – more correctly, the Colorado potato beetle – is native to North America. Originally, it fed on a potato relative known as buffalo bur. First collected in 1811 in the Rocky Mountains, the beetle became a major pest as humans spread across the US and began to plant potatoes. The adult beetles were able to fly fairly long distances and eventually spread across the continent. Today they are found in all states.
How big are potato beetles?
Potato beetles are about one-quarter inch long and about half that wide. The body shape is rounded to oval. They are typical insects, with six legs; the forelegs are smaller than the four hind legs. The beetles are an orange-yellow in color and the wings are striped in ivory and dark brown or black. Feathery-looking antennae point forward from the beetle’s spotted head.
How do potato beetles affect potatoes?
A serious infestation of potato beetles can decimate a potato crop by completely defoliating the plants. The most serious damage usually occurs from larvae in the late stage, just before they pupate. The beetles can produce three generations in one season, with 350 to 500 eggs per female. When potatoes are still in the vegetative growth stage, they can tolerate considerable defoliation, but once tubers begin to develop after flowering, they are much more sensitive.
What is chewing on my potato leaves?
Both adult potato beetles and larvae chew on the potato leaves. They may start at the outside edge and work their way inward or cut irregular holes in the leaf surface. You won’t have to make the diagnosis by looking at the damage, however. In most cases, you’ll find beetles or larvae on the plant in addition to seeing damaged leaves. You’ll also see orange egg clusters on the leaf underside.
What animals eat potato leaves?
Potato beetles and their larvae only eat the leaves. If you have tuber damage, it’s usually something else causing the problem. Wireworms, flea beetles, potato tuberworm and white grubs are all likely candidates for tuber damage. Mice, voles and rats like to eat the tubers; you’ll usually see signs of digging or underground tunnels if these animals are the culprits.
What is a false potato beetle?
False potato beetles are related to the Colorado potato beetles and have a similar appearance. However, they eat weeds rather than potato leaves. Primarily found in the mid-Atlantic and southeastern states, they appear at the same time as potato beetles. If you see what looks like a Colorado potato beetle but it has a light brown instead of ivory stripe in the center of each wing, it’s a false potato beetle.
How to get rid of potato beetle in garden?
Handpicking is effective in smaller gardens. You can remove adults and larvae this way; drop into a pail of soapy water or feed to poultry. You can also remove or crush eggs by hand. Excellent garden sanitation helps decrease places for the potato beetle to overwinter. If you use mulch, clean it up at the end of the season and compost. Turn poultry into the garden in winter to scratch and eat pupae.
When did potato beetles spread?
Although not discovered until 1811, Colorado potato beetles quickly spread from the Rocky Mountains to the East Coast by 1874, and reached Europe a few years later.
How to identify potato bugs in Colorado?
The area behind their heads is orange-yellow. You can easily identify them by the 10 alternating yellow and black stripes on their shells. These voracious insects can be confused with false potato beetles ( Leptinotarsa juncta ), which are not pests.
What to do when beetles are out?
If you are a home gardener, one of the first and most effective things you can do is to go on the offensive and pluck the slow-moving beetles off your plants. This is easiest to accomplish on a sunny, warm day when the pests are out and about.
How to tell if a potato beetle is a false beetle?
Potato beetle larvae hatch from yellow-orange eggshell clusters on the bottom of leaves. Newly hatched larvae are bright red. The older orange-pink larvae are about 1/2 inch long.
Why do you rotate your potato plants?
Plus, it has an added bonus: this environment favors predators of the beetles! Rotating your potato or tomato crops every few years is a good strategy to reduce disease and beetle outbreaks. Many diseases are soilborne, and the beetles frequently overwinter in the soil.
What pests were dropped from planes during the Cold War?
Peppers. Ground Cherry. Infestations are so serious that they have even been considered part of international warfare! In the 1950s, East Germans called these pests “Yankee beetles” and accused the United States government of dropping them from planes during the Cold War.
Where can I find beetles?
These insects can be found in every state except California, Nevada, Hawaii, and Alaska. They are also pests in every Canadian province, and in Central America. The beetles have spread to more than 6 million square miles across Europe and Asia.
Where do Colorado potato beetles live?
Colorado potato beetles can be found all over the US as they’re a prominent species.
Where are the eggs of potato beetles found?
Colorado potato beetle eggs are deposited in clusters and usually found on the underside of leaves on potato plants.
Did you get rid of the Colorado potato bugs?
You can greatly reduce the number of beetles chomping up your veggies.
Do potato beetles eat tomato plants?
Yes, Colorado potato beetles eat tomato plants and many other members of the Solanaceae family.
What time do potato beetles breed?
Monday-Friday. 8AM-8PM (Eastern). Potato beetles will breed, feed, and consume your plant which can result in a failed harvest. The larvae of Colorado potato beetles are what do the most damage. They spend most of their time feeding on the leaves of your plant, which will result in drooping, witling, and dead plants.
How to tell if a potato beetle is real or false?
The false potato beetle (Leptinotarsa juncta) is confused with the “real” Colorado potato beetle. They’re very similar and have the same feeding habits. The easiest way to tell the difference between the false beetle and an actual Colorado beetle is by the color of the markings.
What is the life cycle of a Colorado potato beetle?
The life cycle of a Colorado potato beetle is nothing special because it’s similar to any other beetle. Adults will mate and deposit eggs in suitable environments on your host potato plant. This can be a single plant or rows of plants, depending on how much food is available for them to eat.
Overview
Description
Taxonomy
- Plants they attack
Colorado potato beetles feed primarily on potatoes. They can also attack other plants in the night shade family (Solanaceae), including: 1. Eggplant 2. Tomato 3. Pepper 4. Nightshade 5. Ground cherry - Life cycle
Colorado potato beetle adults spend the winter 5-10 inches underground in potato fields, field margins, windbreaks and gardens. 1. Adults feed for a short time in the spring, and then begin to mate and lay clusters of 10-30 eggs on the undersides of leaves. 2. Each female can lay up to 35…
Distribution
Lifecycle
Adult beetles typically are 6–11 mm (0.24–0.43 in) in length and 3 mm (0.12 in) in width. They weigh 50-170 mg. The beetles are orange-yellow in colour with 10 characteristic black stripes on their elytra. The specific name decemlineata, meaning 'ten-lined', derives from this feature. Adult beetles may, however, be visually confused with L. juncta, the false potato beetle, which is not an agricultural pest. L. juncta also has alternating black and white strips on its back, but one of the …
Behavior and ecology
The Colorado potato beetle was first observed in 1811 by Thomas Nuttall and was formally described in 1824 by American entomologist Thomas Say. The beetles were collected in the Rocky Mountains, where they were feeding on the buffalo bur, Solanum rostratum. The genus Leptinotarsa is assigned to the chrysolmelid beetle tribe Doryphorini (in subfamily Chrysomelinae), which it shar…
As an agricultural pest
The beetle is most likely native to the area between Colorado and northern Mexico, and was discovered in 1824 by Thomas Say in the Rocky Mountains. It is found in North America, and is present in every state and province except Alaska, California, Hawaii, and Nevada. It now has a wide distribution across Europe and Asia, totalling over 16 million km .
Relationship with humans
Colorado potato beetle females are very prolific and are capable of laying over 500 eggs in a 4- to 5-week period. The eggs are yellow to orange, and are about 1 mm (0.039 in) long. They are usually deposited in batches of about 30 on the underside of host leaves. Development of all life stages depends on temperature. After 4–15 days, the eggs hatch into reddish-brown larvae with hu…