Foliage may discolor and wilt, limbs may die back, and branches or entire plants may be killed. However, roundheaded borers attack mostly damaged or dying plants; vigorous trees are rarely attacked. These are all small, soft-bodied insects that feed by sucking plant sap.
Damage may include leaf stippling, leaf bleaching, leaf curling and distortion, whitish waxy growth, or sticky honeydew condensed sap which may support the growth of sooty mold. Although most of these insects are related, thrips are classified in a different group. Mites are tiny and difficult to see without a magnifying glass. Mites in the groups listed below may damage fruit trees, vines, berries, vegetables, and ornamental plants. Spider mites cause stippling on leaves.
Other pest mites cause a distorted growth of leaves, shoots, buds, or fruit. There are also many carnivorous species of mites that feed on other mites or small insects. These caterpillars develop within wood, buds, crowns, or shoots of plants. They may cause a variety of damage symptoms including holes in trunks, weakened branches or crowns, and distorted shoot growth. Menu Skip to content. Bark Beetles. Aphids, adelgids, and phylloxera.
Adults of these tiny pests often lack wings. Aphids can produce copious amounts of sticky honeydew, which can lead to the growth of black sooty mold. Hoppers, Sharpshooters, Spittlebugs. These insects feed by sucking plant juices and may leave drops of sticky excrement. Damage includes stippled, bleached or brownish leaves. Mealybugs often have waxy filaments radiating from their bodies.
They are wingless, move slowly, and congregate in groups covered with whitish mealy or cottony wax. Psyllids and whiteflies suck plant sap and excrete sticky honeydew. As adults, psyllids resemble miniature cicadas; whiteflies look like tiny flies with whitish wings. Thrips are tiny, slender insects, with fringed wings and piercing mouthparts. They often leave tiny black dots of waste on leaves. Spider Mites. Avocado brown mite Brown mite Citrus red mite European red mite Persea mite Sixspotted mite Six-spotted spider mite Webspinning spider mites.
A carrion beetle of the family Silphidae, also known as the black burying beetle Nicrophorus nigrita. According to James N. Hogue Introduction to California Beetles , , Nicrophorus demonstrates the most advanced behavior of parental care known in beetles. These beetles bury small animal carcasses to reduce competion with flies, ants and other carrion-feeding insects. This insures food for the beetles and their larvae. In addition, they use their sensitive red antennae to detect hydrogen sulfide and cyclic carbon compounds that are released from decaying carcasses.
Darkling beetles of the genus Eleodes have fused wing covers elytra and cannot fly. They are sometimes called "stink beetles" because some species apparently emit an odor when handled; however, I have never observed any disagreeable odor in the docile species shown in the above images. An Eloedes beetle in its characteristic "headstanding" alarm posture. Unlike most of the Eloedes beetles I have observed, this one definitely released a slightly disagreeable odor.
Ironclad Beetles Phloeodes pustulosis , another member of the diverse family Tenebrionidae. These ground-dwelling beetles have fused wing covers elytra and cannot fly. They are fairly common in southern California. The common name is derived from their very hard body wall that can resist a sharp insect pin. When disturbed or threatened they retract their legs and antennae and remain motionless.
They are thought to feed on decaying, fungus-ridden wood. Apsena sp. This is not a large ant. It is a rove beetle, sometimes called the Devil's coach horse Staphylinus olens. These large, ground-dwelling beetles belong to the family Staphylinidae and are occasionally found in urbanized areas of coastal southern California during September and October.
This beetle has short wing covers elytra and does not fly. When alarmed it exhibits a threat posture by opening its formidable mandibles and raising the tip of its abdomen right image. Although the abdomen has no stinging device, this display serves to ward off enemies. The alarm posture is well deserved because this beetle can inflict a painful bite into your finger.
Two glands at the tip of the abdomen emit a malodorous yellowish liquid. Both adults and larvae are voracious predators. According to C. Although it was originally introduced from Europe around or before , it is probably beneficial in your garden. Common calosoma Calosoma semilaeve , a large beetle that runs free during daytime hours in search of prey. When disturbed or threatened it emits a foul oder that smells like burning electrical insulation.
Larva of a ground beetle Carabidae from Anza-Borrego Desert. Ground beetle and larva of the genus Calosoma in the family Carabidae. This predaceous genus is often called "caterpillar hunter. Note: In moths and butterflies that do not spin cocoons, the hard-shelled pupa is called a chrysalis. See Painted Lady Butterfly. Laemostenus complanatus , a fast-running, predatory carabid beetle. Although native to northern Africa, this beetle is fairly common in southern California.
It has been introduced around the world, including the Mediterranean region, western North America, southern South America, and parts of Australia and Tasmania. Big-Headed Ground Beetle cf. According to one report, this predatory beetle is equipped to take on a scorpion! It never showed any aggressiveness toward me, maybe because I gave it water before releasing it into my flower garden.
Fuller's rose weevil Naupactus cervinus , a small beetle introduced into southern California from South America. No males have been found in this species. The females produce viable eggs without fertilization, a phenomenon known as parthenogenesis. Weevils snout beetles belong to the large family Curculionidae.
Blue milkweed beetle Chrysochus cobaltinus , a beautiful beetle that commonly feeds on milkweeds Asclepias. It belongs to the large family Chrysomelidae. Photo taken in the northern Coast Range of California. The glorious beetle Plusiotis gloriosa , one of the most beautiful beetles in North America. It belongs to the large and very diverse family Scarabaeidae, along with June beetles, rain beetles and rhinoceros beetles.
Adults feed on juniper foliage in the southwestern United States Texas to Arizona and northern Mexico. Their striking color actually serves as camouflage by blending in with the native vegetation. Golden tortoise beetle on bindweed leaf Convolvulus arvensis. A deceased golden tortoise beetle Metriona bicolor. One of my favorite desert beetles showed up in an ant trap in front of my house. This predaceous beetle stalks its prey like a miniature tiger. She mates on flowers and sometimes eats her mate, another example of sexual suicide if you are a male.
See Sexual Suicide. References: Borror, D. Holt, Reinhart and Winston, New York. Evans, A. Field Guide to Beetles of California.
University of California Press, Berkeley, California. Introduction to California Beetles. Hogue, C. Insects of the Los Angeles Basin. Always wear a helmet and face mask while riding a motorcycle through regions with rhinoceros beetles. This is especially true at night because these flying "rhinos" are attracted to the headlights.
Do not attach strings to the legs of large beetles to control their flight. This is not only cruel, but some beetles can bite. Do not place Spanish fly powder in the food or drink of a potential mating partner, not even if they say it is O. Buy a lovely beetle body necklace and wear it to an elegant social engagement. Stock your swimming pool with large, predaceous diving beetles and allow them to remove insect pests and unwanted guests.
Do not place palm trunks on your hardwood floors, they might contain the huge larvae of palm-boring beetles. Do not insult beetles by referring to them as "flies," "pigs" or "bugs. The two leathery elytra are spread apart to reveal the unfolded, membranous fight wings.
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