What does the Colorado potato beetle look like, its photo and lifestyle

The Colorado potato beetle is heard by almost every person. Many people encounter it in their personal plots and try to get rid of this pest right away, until it destroys the entire crop. It belongs to the family of leaf beetles, the order - beetles. Scientists do not distinguish varieties of this pest. It is desirable to know the enemy by sight, so it’s interesting to get information about how the Colorado potato beetle looks, what it eats, its life cycle, whether it flies or not, how it differs from its counterparts from where it came from.

A bit of history, the origin of the name

Those who are interested in the question of whether the Colorado potato beetle is an insect or not can safely answer - yes, this is an insect. Mexico is his homeland. People first encountered him in 1824 when they saw that an unremarkable beetle eats leaves of tomato, tobacco and other crops. When potatoes were cultivated in America (Colorado), he decided to try its leaves. He really liked them and since then has become the main delicacy for the beetle in spring and summer.

Interesting!

At the end of the fifties of the last century in the United States, the Colorado potato beetle, along with its fellow tribesmen, caused enormous damage to potato fields. In this country, the name “Colorado potato beetle” was assigned to it.

Since then, this pest began to increasingly conquer territories for itself, mastering new places. He was found in the Soviet Union in Ukraine after the end of the war in 1949. After 4 years, whole accumulations of pests were recorded in Russian cities - Brest, Kaliningrad, Volyn and other areas. Warm weather gave them the opportunity to move to the cities of Belarus, the Baltic states, they began to dwell throughout Ukraine. Every year, the population of the Colorado potato beetle increased, and today it can be found practically throughout Russia.

What does a bug look like?

The Colorado potato beetle is a frequent guest in the fields and gardens, so many have seen it more than once.

• Insects have an orange color of modified wings, which are tightly adjacent to the body. Each elytra has five black stripes. By this coloring Colorado beetles are easy to recognize.
• The length of the body can reach 15 mm, in width - 7 mm.
• If you carefully look at the photo of the Colorado potato beetle, you can see that it has a convex part on top and a flat part below.
• The rounded head of the insect is very small, much smaller than the body. Black eyes are located on its sides. The organs of touch are the antennae, consisting of 11 segments.
• The abdomen is decorated with black spots arranged in rows.
• Paws, in the amount of three pairs, are poorly developed in the beetle. They have peculiar hooks, thanks to which the pest easily creeps along the leaves.

Interesting!

The Colorado potato beetle flies thanks to well-developed webbed wings. It easily makes long-distance flights, exploring new habitats. Bugs fly only in warm weather, before they have to winter.

Colorado Beetle Evolution

With the onset of spring, Colorado beetles crawl to the surface. After 5-6 days, their reproduction begins. This process continues until the fall. After mating, females find secluded places and hide the eggs of the Colorado potato beetle in them. Their number varies from 20 to 70 pieces. Male and female mate most intensely in sunny, clear weather. Most often this occurs in the afternoon or afternoon.

Eggs can be seen on the leaves (on the back), as well as on the shoots. Larvae appear in 7-21 days. They go through the process of pupation and with the onset of summertime turn into adults. If you look at the photo of the larva of the Colorado potato beetle, you can clearly see the curved back of the red-orange color, which changes as it grows older. It turns orange with a yellowish tint.

On a note!

A feature of the larvae is the presence on the sides of two rows of black dots. They are very voracious, but initially feed only on the pulp of plants, subsequently completely eat the shoots. Therefore, the struggle with the larvae of the Colorado potato beetle in the gardens and fields is inevitable, as this will help preserve the crop.

There are different methods for their destruction: mechanical, biological, agricultural using chemicals. As a result of actions taken by humans, beetles must die.

Life cycle

If fertilization in the female occurred in the autumn, she lays eggs in the spring, immediately after wintering. Larvae appear in 14-21 days. Feature of development - insects go through 4 stages of development of the Colorado potato beetle:

1. The body, densely covered with hairs, has a gray color. The body reaches 2.5 mm in length, feeds on the flesh of young leaves.
2. The hairs on the body slightly lower, the length of the body increases to 4.5 mm. At this stage, the larva feeds on the leaves themselves, but only on its soft part.
3. The body acquires an orange color, the length increases to 9 mm.
4. At the last stage, a color change occurs, it acquires a reddish-yellowish hue. The body may have a length of 10 to 15 mm. This larval developmental cycle is the most voracious.

In the adult stage, the Colorado potato beetle eats very richly. It almost completely destroys all foliage, making itself nutritional reserves. Larvae hide 10-15 cm underground for further pupation. This process can last up to 18 days and it depends on what the temperature of the soil is.

Wintering Features

When pupating in autumn, the Colorado potato beetle hibernates in the ground, appearing on the surface. Adults can withstand temperatures up to -9 ° C. If the soil is sandy, the depth of their bed reaches up to half a meter. In winter, Colorado beetles sleep for a long time, some individuals die if the frost is very strong. A female hibernates worse if she has already laid eggs, as she lacks fat reserves. In spring and summer, they appear on the surface of the soil, where their transformation occurs. They begin to wake up when the temperature of the earth warms up to 14 ° C, and the air reaches 15 ° C.

In hot weather and in the dry period, Colorado beetles often fall asleep. They can sleep for almost a month, after which their life is reborn again, and they can multiply.

Important!

Effective time for fight with colorado beetles is the first and second stages of its development. This is due to the fact that the pupa and the adult are not so much affected by chemicals.

Pest eggs

Few people are interested in how much the Colorado potato beetle lives. On average, he lives 1 year. But some individuals are able to live up to 3 years. In just one season, the female can lay up to 1000 oval-shaped eggs, up to 2 in length, and up to 3 mm wide. Their color is light yellow and bright orange. Older females lay eggs of a darker color.The air temperature conducive to the appearance of larvae should not be lower than 15 ° C. Colorado beetles are sensitive to low temperatures. Therefore, in severe winter, depending on the type and moisture of the soil, individual insects and, accordingly, the eggs of the Colorado potato beetle die at a temperature of -9 to -11 ° C during the first six hours.

Interesting!

The sensitivity of insects to cold appears 3 times a year, many of them die. At first, increased mortality is observed between September and October. At this time, the potato growing season had already ended and the Colorado potato beetles, including females, who were late winged, did not receive the necessary supply of food. They burrow into the soil and with the onset of cold weather, many of them die. The second period falls on the second half of November and the beginning of December. At this time, the state of physiological rest (diapause) of the pests is over, the body's resistance decreases, and the protective reactions from the cold are still weak. All this together leads to the death of the Colorado beetles. The third period begins with the advent of spring - in March and April. During this period, insects prepare for awakening. Their death occurs for various reasons: due to damage to the body by fungi and bacteria, exhaustion, and with the sudden onset of cold weather.

False Colorado Beetle

Such an insect is sometimes found in Russian regions. It is very similar to a real Colorado potato beetle in appearance, but unlike it, it is not dangerous. Its color is faded, and the stripes on the back are white. Food for it is the weeds of the nightshade family. Potato tubers practically do not attract him. Therefore, an insect of this species is often called a false potato beetle. It can not be destroyed, since it does not cause harm to agriculture.

Natural enemies

The Colorado potato beetle, like other insects, has its own natural "enemies"for which they will be a tasty prey. These include:

• Domestic bird. Homeowners involved in the cultivation and breeding of turkeys and guinea fowls can safely let them into the garden. They enjoy eating larvae on tops.
• Bed bugs - podizus and perillus. They and their larvae feast on the eggs of Colorado beetles.
• Flies of the genus Dorifophagus. They lay their larvae in the body of beetles. But in a harsh climate, flies do not live.
• Grasshoppers. More than 50 species live on the territory of the Russian Federation, almost all of them are illegible in food, and do not miss the larvae of Colorado beetles.

It is likely that gardeners will have great help in controlling pests from feathered friends and some species of insects.

How bugs appear on sites and what they eat

Owners of cottages and country houses involved in growing crops are wondering how the Colorado beetle got to them. Definitely no one can answer this question. We can say that they moved from a neighboring site, they were attracted by the smell of potatoes. And he acts on them like on cats valerian. Therefore, the best that can be done is to unite with neighbors in the fight against them.

Interesting!

The Colorado potato beetle, in addition to potatoes, eats other crops grown by vegetable growers. If their favorite goodies are not enough, they move to tomatoes and eggplantby eating completely their leaves. They also consume wild nightshade and accumulate toxic substances in plants in their bodies. Therefore, birds of prey are not attracted by larvae. Only turkeys and guinea fowls eat them.

Some owners of suburban real estate plant in their plots a perennial shrub called ashwagandha. In India, it is called the root of life, because it has healing properties. Therefore, the question of whether Ashwagandha is eaten by Colorado beetles is quite relevant. The shrub belongs to the family of nightshade plants, like tomatoes, eggplant, pepper, so it is of interest to Colorado beetles.