Good bug or bad bug?

chancethegardener · July 9, 2012

I noticed the bugs in the attached pictures on my pepper and melon plants. Any idea whether this is a good or bad bug?

meadowyck · July 9, 2012

I can't really tell enough about it to say anything, but if it is a beetle then I think not a good one.

RayR · July 9, 2012

That is a beetle, it's just too dark backlit against the sky to make out any details. What color is it?

chancethegardener · July 9, 2012

It is dark purple/brown with a shiny shell.

chancethegardener · July 9, 2012

According to the book I have and based on some pictures I found online, the closest thing is the Japanese beetle.

kath · July 9, 2012

They don't appear to be Japanese beetles to me- it's hard to see them clearly but Japanese beetles have a coppery metallic sheen to them that I don't see in your photos.

MissS · July 9, 2012

It sure does look to be Japanese beetles to me. The first photo is a female. Her leg is sticking out and she is "calling" a mate. She is releasing a male attracting scent. Squish those bugs. If you startle them they will fall to the ground and you can step on them. I also carry a container with water and a drop of dish soap. I let them take a deadly bath in there.

Patti

RayR · July 10, 2012

Does it look like these?

meadowyck · July 10, 2012

the first pictures don't look Jap beetle but some other type of beetle.

MissS · July 10, 2012

Yep, the Japanese beetle. No mistake. Bad Bug. Voracious appettite. Breeds prolifically.

chancethegardener · July 10, 2012

Ray, yes they look like that.

chancethegardener · July 10, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by MissS

Yep, the Japanese beetle. No mistake. Bad Bug. Voracious appettite. Breeds prolifically.

It looks like they ate a lot of pepper leaves. I will pick them tomorrow morning. Luckily, -based on what I read- they don't attack the fruits.

July 9, 2012	#2
meadowyck Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2012 Location: Brooksville, FL Posts: 1,001	I can't really tell enough about it to say anything, but if it is a beetle then I think not a good one. __________________ Jan “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” -Theodore Roosevelt

July 9, 2012	#7
MissS Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin Posts: 3,150	It sure does look to be Japanese beetles to me. The first photo is a female. Her leg is sticking out and she is "calling" a mate. She is releasing a male attracting scent. Squish those bugs. If you startle them they will fall to the ground and you can step on them. I also carry a container with water and a drop of dish soap. I let them take a deadly bath in there. Patti __________________ ~ Patti ~

July 10, 2012	#9
meadowyck Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2012 Location: Brooksville, FL Posts: 1,001	the first pictures don't look Jap beetle but some other type of beetle. __________________ Jan “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” -Theodore Roosevelt

July 10, 2012	#10
MissS Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Pewaukee, Wisconsin Posts: 3,150	Yep, the Japanese beetle. No mistake. Bad Bug. Voracious appettite. Breeds prolifically. __________________ ~ Patti ~

July 9, 2012	#3
RayR Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Cheektowaga, NY Posts: 2,466	That is a beetle, it's just too dark backlit against the sky to make out any details. What color is it?

July 9, 2012	#4
chancethegardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: WV Posts: 604	It is dark purple/brown with a shiny shell.

July 9, 2012	#6
kath Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: zone 6b, PA Posts: 5,664	They don't appear to be Japanese beetles to me- it's hard to see them clearly but Japanese beetles have a coppery metallic sheen to them that I don't see in your photos.