OK, the topic is types of beetles, and for many people, it’sa real yawner because, well beetles are not as popular an insect for the general population, as say butterflies. Luckily, insect enthusiasts often think beetle identification, if only because of their potential threat to lawns and gardens. That’s a good thing. With names such as Dung Beetles, June Beetles, May Beetles and Rhinocerous Beetles, the native Scarab Beetles are often colorful and easy to identify. The picture shows a large green June Beetle in the Cotinis genus. A type of beetle commonly found in residential areas across the United States.
Discussions of types of beetles can extend as long as the number of native beetle species. Generally the organizing gets easier because approximately 99% of all beetle species fit into one of two beetle suborders:
- Suborder Adephaga: While often characterized as the large ground and water beetles, not all large beetles found on the ground or in the water belong to families in the suborder. Suborder members are held together by a handful of shared physical characteristics.
- Suborder Polyphaga: This is the largest group, with estimates that it contains close to 85% – 90% of all beetle species. Ladybugs or ladybird beetles might be the most easy to identify beetle group, however identifying lady bird beetle species may not be so easy. Identifying flower beetles such as the longhorn beetles, common visitors to residential areas, starts by noticing their long antennae.
Carrion Beetles are a great story that comes from the suborder Polyphaga. Their salvaging habits make them one of nature’s natural recyclers. As far as beetles go, it’s a small family. Depending on the source anywhere from thirty to fifty species can be found in the United States. The common name carrion refers to the fact that the beetles feed on a variety of invertebrate animals from birds, to rodents to snakes.
Identifying Ground Beetles
Logic suggests that identifying ground beetles begins by establishing the fact that the beetle in question actually is on the ground, rather than, for example, being on a tree. It’s a good ID starting point.
Moving past the basics, identifying ground beetles often begins with a walk through the woods, or along a river path. The large, dark bodied beetles, forest floor predators go by the name ground beetles, a large family (Carabidae) of beetles in the suborder Adephaga.
Ground beetles inhabit most areas of the world, and scientists estimate up to three hundred thousand species have already been documented. They spend their nights, (most are nocturnal) roaming the ground in search of insect prey.
The narrow head and jaws make it easier for it to feed on snails, it’s meal of choice as it roams the forest floors.
Some ground beetles can also be identified by color. North America hosts approximately one dozen different Pasimachus species, often called Blue-lined or Purple-line Ground Beetles because of the colorful tint around the edges of the body. The picture highlights the Pasimachus large head and jaws. They are predators that use their jaws to catch and consume caterpillars and a variety of insects in their territory.
Pterostichus, a dominant genera of Woodland Ground Beetles can often be identified by a shiny body and striated elytra. On occasion, ground beetles are known to make their way inside structures. While known for powerful jaws, most ground beetles are not known to actively bite humans.
All things being equal, they prefer a flight over fight defensive strategy. Most will scurry away from humans, and on occasion they will fly. Because they are beneficial insects, agriculturalists generally do not recommend the use of pesticides as a pest control strategy.
Tiger Beetles
Close to one hundred Tiger Beetles species live in the United States. Many entomologists consider them beneficial insects because they prey on pest insects such as flies.
Most tiger beetles can be found in areas of sandy soil along water ways. Identifying them starts by noticing their movement. They tend to scurry along the ground at a fast clip, looking for food.
The top picture shows a colorful species measuring about one-half inch in length. It also shows the insect’s jaws, that might inflict a painful bite on any person who picked it up.
Picture two of the Olique-lined tiger beetle, highlights the light line pattern on an otherwise dull, brown body. There is also a subspecies with a green body.
Because they are ground dwellers Darklig beetles, often get lumped into the ground beetles group. With well over one thousand Darkling Beetle species in the United States, identifying any species can be difficult. Generally the family gets its name based on the beetle’s dark black or brown wings. The wings are fused, making them ground bound, a perfect environment for their food, dead or dying plant material.
They are medium sized beetles, with a few species measuring up to two inches. Larger ones, like the species in the top picture look similar to ground beetles.
Often the shape of the antennae and legs are used to distinguish between darkling and ground beetles, see the ground beetle picture for a comparison.
Darkling larvae, mealworms, can be agriculture pests because they feed on grains.
The picture shows a specimen from the coelcnemis genus.
This picture, a tailed beetle, shows a specimen from the Eleodes genus, more commonly referred to as desert stink beetles.
Bess Beetles, primarily a tropical family, are known mostly for their large size, (one and one-half inch body length). Additionally, they are considered social insects that live and breed in downed trees. The picture shows Odontotaenius disjunctus, complete with its shiny black body, horn and brown legs. It is the most common species, found in forest and woodland areas throughout much of the eastern half of the United States.
Ladybugs
What types of ladybugs are popular?
The short answer is all types of ladybugs are popular, and their popularity can be credited to both their bright colors and their helpfulness. Attesting to their popularity, six states, Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Tennessee, have designated the ladybug as the official state insect or official state bug.
Unfortunately for many native ladybug species, their popularity has its drawbacks. For example, their utility to humans translated into large importations of non-native species for agriculture purposes. In turn, changing land use and the large non-native species population began to place pressure on native ladybug species.
The Nine Spotted Lady Beetle, for example, New York’s state insect, use to be one of the most common types of ladybugs in the Northeast United States. Finding one today in New York, or any place in the Northeast is a very challenging task.
Scientists hypothesize that one species, the Seven-spotted Lady Beetle, one of many types of ladybugs native to Europe, were introduced into areas of the Northeast United States in the Post-WWII era to fight aphids. These hardy insects out competed other types of ladybugs for the available plant and food sources in many areas.
Its range now extends from coast to coast, and it has been identified as a potential cause of native lady beetle population declines, including the Nine-spotted Lady Beetle. The Seven Spotted Ladybug is pictured at the top of the page. The large seven spots on the wings, and the facial pattern provide good identification clues.
Ladybugs experience complete metamorphosis like other insects. Therefore, the question of how to identify ladybugs can also be answered by looking at ladybug larvae and ladybug pupa.
The larvae in the picture with three spots along each side of the body is a Seven Spotted Ladybug larvae. Larvae from all types of ladybugs, like butterfly larvae (caterpillars) have a unique look.
Ladybug pupa, as shown in the third picture, are hardened cases often attached to leaves. They provide security for the final stage of development, allowing the fully formed adult to break through the walls and walk out when ready.
Looking at ladybug pictures and getting a feel for wing color and spots also helps with ladybug identification. Formally, ladybug wings are called elytra and the neck area is called a Protonotum. Those two features, wing color and face and/or neck patterns represent the second set of information often used for identification purposes. For example, because they buck the traditional ladybug look of orange wings and black spots, many people are interested in identifying a ladybug with black wings and two red spots. The ladybug pictures presented here cover a broad range of representative species.
In addition to the nine-spotted and seven-spotted Coccinella species referred to above, another species in the genera, the Three-banded Lady Beetle provides additional examples of within genera wing differences. It serves as a ladybug identification reminder that wing pattern does not always represent the best genera field identification tool.
Compare the first two pictures in this section. They show two different Three-banded Ladybug subspecies. The western subspecies, first picture, often, but not always, has a few small wing spots. The neck and/or facial pattern, in this instance, a black and white color combination, without a unique pattern, serves as the key field identification clue for this species. The predominantly eastern subspecies in the second picture has the same facial and next pattern. The difference is that Coccinella trifasciata perplexa, can easily be identified by three dark bands on each elytra.
Multicolored Asian Lady Beetles share the commercial ladybug market with Seven Spotted Ladybugs, and therefore they also rank as the widest ranging of all types of ladybugs.
Their rise to the top of the commercial market can be readily explained by their behavior. They tend to congregate in large numbers, possibly thousands, during the fall and winter hibernation period, making them profitable to collect and sell in the spring garden season.
Walls of residential structures provide especially good refuge, transforming these otherwise beneficial insects into part time pests. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers a few pest management suggestions, saying,
Preventing the lady beetles from entering is the best approach to keeping them from becoming a household nuisance in fall and winter. Caulking exterior cracks and crevices before the lady beetles seek overwintering sites is the best way to keep them out. This will also keep out other unwanted insects such as wasps, and will save homeowners money on energy costs.
Identifying the Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle using wing spots as a guide can be problematic because wing spots vary from species to species. The picture highlights a distinct “W” pattern on the neck, the more appropriated field identification clue.
Asian ladybug larvae also have a distinct orange spot pattern as highlighted in the picture.
Moving on to another genera shows the limited utility of associating ladybugs with spots on the wing for identification purposes. In fact, spotless ladybugs are also fairly common species. The Polished Lady Beetle (Cycloneda munda), native to the East, and the Spotless Lady Beetle (Cycloneda sanguinea), native to the West, account for the bulk of the population of ladybugs that characteristically lack spots on the wings.
A handful of other types of ladybugs that lack spots can be found from Texas through the Western United States.
Proper ladybug identification requires matching the facial pattern to the spotless wings. The black eye spot pattern on the neck of the ladybug in the picture is the common pattern for Cycloneda species.
As the composite picture on the right shows, some ladybug species also lack the typical orange wings. The top picture in the composite shows a ladybug with black wings and a red or orange spot pattern.
North America lists hosts approximately two dozen types of ladybugs in the genus Hyperaspis. Their predominantly black wings come covered with bright red, yellow or orange spots.
The picture might show Hyperaspis postica, a West Coast species. Because wing spot patterns change from species to species, it’s worth noting that the picture might also show a Chilocorus, another ladybug species with black wings and two red spots.
The next two species in the picture move the conversation to types of ladybugs with multiple spots. Picture two shows a species from the Anatis genus. The facial markings serve as the best field identification clue. The eye-spotted species, for example, have distinct eye rings around their spots. The fifteen-spotted species come in red and white wing colors.
Moving to species identification, the picture might show Anatis rathvoni, or Rathvon’s Lady Beetle, showing some partial eye rings around the wing spots.
With so many spotted lady beetles, the name Spotted Lady Beetle (Coleomegilla maculata) can come across as meaningless.
Some times the species in picture three is called a twelve-spotted lady beetle or pink lady beetle, because it’s color can sometimes appear pinkish.
Coleomegilla maculata is a very common Eastern species, present in smaller populations in the Southwest.
No discussion of the types of ladybugs in the United States is complete without mention of the Hippodamia genera. In total it consists of over a dozen species, including the American Lady Beetle (Hippodamia americana), an Upper Midwest and Canadian species. Physical appearance varies greatly from species to species. The picture shows the Convergent Lady Beetle, another common species available in the commercial market. Convergent ladybugs overwinter in large aggregations, where they are collected for commercial purposes.
The spot pattern on the wings varies from region to region. However the two white stripes on the black neck area often serve as good field identification clues. Today they can be found from coast to coast.
The white stripes on the Protonotum identify Hippodamia sinuata species. There are a handful of subspecies, each showing differing wing patterns.
Pictures two and three shows a sinuata subspecies with variable spot patterns on the wings.
Finally, wing pattern variability in the fourth picture makes it difficult to identify the final Hippodamia species. Of note is the fact that the subject in the picture is also missing one of the white stripes on the Protonotum.
Garden Beetles
This sections cover common types of lawn and garden beetles for the purpose of providing identification help. It starts with the flower long-horned beetles.
With few exceptions, the approximately one thousand North American long-horned beetle species (Cerambycidae) go about their days without much notice. Like leaf beetles, adults and larvae feed on plant material, including trees, which places them in the category of insect pests.
While the presence of many longhorn species in an areas constitutes more of an annoyance rather than a major agricultural or commercial problem, the few noteworthy exceptions continue to interest professionals. The Asian Longhorned Beetle, for example, a non-native species, ranks among the most dangerous of the longhorn beetles. Its larval diet consists of hardwood trees and it does not have any natural predators. Without proper control, an outbreak could easily destroy a hardwood forest.
North American texts list approximately two hundred flower longhorn beetle species. The large number of species means that at least a handful of species are potential visitors to any garden. Most present no threat to garden integrity.
Interestingly enough, the large number of species also means many lack common names. Flower longhorns in the genus Evodinus, for example, generally do not have common names. Species are common in areas of New England, the Northeast and Pacific Northwest. Evodinus monticola vancouveri is the Pacific Northwest subspecies.
The Canadian Flower Longhorn sports a bi-color (red and black) elytra along with a bi-color set of antennae.
A few different subspecies inhabit forested areas of the United States, all probably naturalized citizens.
The amount of black and red coloration can change between subspecies, and the Arizona subspecies has red elytra.
Flea Beetles
For such a small beetle (less than one-quarter inch in length) flea beetles have a rather poor garden reputation. They can be recognized by their typically dark colored bodies, along with the presence of tiny holes in the leaves when they congregate in large numbers.
Different species attach themselves to different plants such as corn, peppers and cole crops. Adults overwinter around garden areas and lay eggs for the next generation during the spring. Keeping the garden area and the grounds around it clean helps disrupt their life cycle.
Leaf Beetles
Vegetarians of the beetle world makes leaf beetles, a must know species for the average home owner. Both adults and larvae consume leaves and other parts of plants in the garden and on trees. The diet of the Spotted Cucumber Beetle, the very common and colorful yellow beetle in the picture, extends beyond the cucumber family. A quick look around the garden will find them settled on the beans, corn and potatoes along with many young plants.
More generally speaking, with approximately fifteen hundred different North American Chrysomelidae species, the pest label can be exaggerated. The majority of the species rarely occur in populations large enough to do significant damage to their host plants.
Identify leaf beetles around the yard can be a fairly straight forward task. Usually they share the physical characteristics of having an oval, brightly colored body with antennae smaller than the body.
Leaf Beetles in the genus Chrysomela, for example, feed on tree leaves, with different species associated with either a tree species or genus. The American Willow Leaf Beetle (Chrysomela knabi), for example, feeds on willows and related trees. The Cottonwood Leaf Beetle (Chrysomela scripta) consumes leaves from cottonwood, hybrid poplar, and some willow trees.
In some cases, Chrysomela can inflict considerable damage to their hosts, especially when the hosts are planted for ornamental reasons. Chrysomela adults measure about one-half inch in length, and they have colorful bodies.
The orange bodies Chrysomela in the second picture could be one of a few different species. Often the spot pattern changes form individual to individual and location to location.
Another of the problematic garden beetles goes by the name Colorado Potato Beetle (Chrysomela decemilneata). Named for their potato leaf consumption habits, given the opportunity, potato beetles also consume foliage of eggplants, tomatoes and peppers. Keep an eye out for them in gardens across the United States.
Garden Beetles: Weevils
Weevils is the more common name given to some members of the Curculionidae family, also called snout and bark beetles. One look at the nut beetle in the picture explains the nickname snout beetles.
With somewhere in the range of 2,500 documented species in the United States, weevils definitely rank as a top garden beetles problem People with nut trees in their yard can often find nuts with holes bored into the shell. these come courtesy of members of the genus Curculio.
The bane of many gardeners, the Rose Weevil or the rose curculio is a tiny black and red predator on rose buds. It does not discriminate between wild and domestic roses or between geographical regions. It can literally be found wherever roses grow in Canada and the United States.
Organic control of Rose Weevil populations can be straightforward. They are tiny, about one-quarter of an inch in length. However, their bright red bodies stand out against a plant’s green leaves and unopened buds. Prior to the roses coming into bloom, carefully inspect each plant for the insect, and when spotted gently knock it off into a cup of soapy water. Refrain from knocking it onto the ground because it will just climb back up to the buds.
Japanese Beetle
Introduced into the United States in 1916, both adults and larvae Japanese Beetles cause damage to lawns, flowers and shrubs. The green metallic bodies with white tufts provide the basic field ID clues.
The grubs overwinter in the soil, and during May and June begin feeding on the grass roots. When the adults emerge they begin feeding on the leaves of most trees, plants, flowers and fruit in the vicinity. Roses are a favorite food.
Consumers have a choice of a variety of organic remedies for both grubs and adults, including introducing nematodes to the turf and placing traps around infested areas in order to limit the number of egg laying adults.