The presence of two potentially serious white grub pests of turfgrass and ornamental plants has recently been confirmed in three northern Indiana counties; Porter, St. Joseph and Allen. The European chafer and Asiatic garden beetle are similar in biology to their cousins, the masked chafer and Japanese beetle, yet differ enough in behavior, habitat and host-plant selection to pose new management challenges. In an effort to understand and track the distribution of these insects, cooperators in the northern half of the state are being sought to monitor black light traps for a portion of June and July of this year. Information gathered from collections will be used to target and refine statewide research and extension efforts and improve management recommendations for these insects.
The following map shows where the beetles have been found as well as the counties where cooperators are needed. Cooperators will be asked to collect trap contents weekly and mail the entire sample (postage paid) to the Turfgrass Entomology and Applied Ecology Laboratory at Purdue University . Interested parties are encouraged to contact Dr. Douglas Richmond at drichmond@purdue.edu . For more information about European chafer and Asiatic garden beetle visit the Indiana Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey website at www.entm.purdue.edu/CAPS/index.htm