What do cockchafers eat and who eats them, the harm of chafers

May beetles have been familiar to us since childhood. The first Khrushchev marks the beginning of summer and warm evenings; it attracts the attention of others with its large size and interesting noise. The children love to watch and take care of insects.

Children catch a bug, put it in a jar or box, and bring it home. At this point the question arises, what do cockchafers eat at home and are they dangerous? What to feed him so that he can live longer and delight him with a cheerful buzz. Let's also consider what harm is caused by Khrushchev.

Description of May beetles

Many people sympathize with chafers, but gardeners are not happy about their appearance.

They know about the gluttony of larvae and adults; beetles are especially successful in eating plants. It is known that in Germany and France there was an environmental disaster due to the reproduction of the beetle in such numbers that the forests disappeared almost completely.

This problem existed in Europe until the 50s; known methods of extermination did not help. The sabotage ended with the creation of pesticides.

May beetles are relatives of the scarab and belong to the lamellar family. Males look majestic with a fan-shaped mustache of seven plates, females have only six. The insects are red-brown and black in color, covered with hair-like scales.

They all feed the same, but there is also a difference: Western beetles are picky, feed only on living greens, and try to avoid rotten plants. The eastern type eats everything. Only a specialist can distinguish the species. What do these cockchafers eat to survive?

Description and features of the insect

We came across an average specimen about 3 cm in length. Fan-shaped antennae and large bulging eyes gave the beetle a touching expression. Without a magnifying glass, numerous white hairs were visible on the head, chest and hard red-brown elytra. The mandible and lower jaw with olfactory palps were examined in the picture in the encyclopedia, because it was not possible to fix the beetle for detailed study. The insect was friendly, did not hide or bite, and moved quickly and purposefully. With the help of three pairs of legs with strong curved claws, our guest climbed his bare arm as easily as he climbed clothing.

The cockchafer flies, violating all the laws of aerodynamics. But he doesn’t know this and continues to fly. Photo: naturephotoportal.com

In the process of searching for information, we learned a very interesting fact: the May Khrushchev turned out to be a “malicious violator” of the laws of aerodynamics. From the point of view of scientists, thin narrow wings cannot lift the weight of his body: their design is unsuccessful, and the muscles are not sufficiently developed. Khrushchevs who disagree with the criticism fly carefree, reaching speeds of up to 3 km/h. The taking off beetle takes in air into hidden cavities and becomes three times lighter, turning into something between an airship and a helicopter.

What do pests eat?

Taste preferences change as the cockchafer develops, because the mouth part develops differently. Adults fly out to hunt in warm weather in May.

Khrushchev eat flowers and leaves, young shoots, fruit and berry trees, and forest plantings. Especially prefer:

apple tree;
cherry;
pear;
maple;
aspen;
birch

They are so voracious that they even eat thuja, which is resistant to many pests. The main feeding occurs during the period of reproduction and active growth throughout the month. Beetles prefer to eat live plants. Picked leaves at home do not cause appetite. Adult insects are less voracious and dangerous than chafer larvae.

Diet of adults and larvae

Based on what the cockchafer and its voracious larva feed on, one can determine the extent of potential harmfulness.

Adult adults first attack oak and birch groves, gnaw the inflorescences of fruit trees (plum, cherry), and damage walnuts, hazelnuts, and apple trees. In summer years, any plantings are attacked - linden, alder, poplar, beech, acacia. The exception for Western beetles is coniferous plantings, but they are preferred by the eastern variety of the insect.

What plant organs are damaged by cockchafers? Since the summer falls in May, young apical shoots, catkins of alder, birch, pine, spruce, inflorescences and ovaries of fruit and berry crops suffer the most. In addition to their favorite plums and cherries, grapes, honeysuckle, hazel, and rose hips also come into the Khrushchev's field of vision. Infestations of beetles cause great damage to nurseries, since they are able to gnaw and completely destroy young seedlings.

The larva is even more omnivorous - it gnaws at any roots encountered along the way, be it young seedlings, herbaceous crops, cereals, root crops, seedlings of garden crops. Moreover, if the active period of Khrushchev does not exceed 1.5 months, then Khrobak harms all summer.

I wonder if the cockchafer can be beneficial? As far as we know, the merits of the Khrushchev, or rather its larvae, were appreciated only by avid fishermen. Bream, chub, ide, and perch bite well on this bait. It is not difficult to dig up larvae in the spring - they rise to the top layer of soil, hide in compost and humus.

Interesting facts about the life of the cockchafer:

Living at home

Experimenters are trying to provide conditions for the beetle to live. The most common method is a box with plucked grass, but from the above it is clear that these conditions are not suitable for the beetle to live. And whether they eat simple grass is unclear. Experienced naturalists recommend placing the insect in a pot with garden soil.

An adult insect will live for a maximum of a week; they live in freedom for 1.5 months during the active mating season, which begins on May evenings, in dry weather.

During this period, females lay 60-90 eggs and, having laid the last clutch, die. Males die earlier, having completed the function of fertilization. But the larva, gradually growing, lives much longer. Pests feed well, but are they eaten by other living creatures?

Who eats cockchafers?

The main eaters of beetles and larvae are birds and wild animals. Therefore, gardeners make birdhouses to preserve their harvest. Starlings will happily eat the cockchafer.

Let's list those who like to eat bugs:

ducks;
chickens;
turkeys;
lizards;
hamsters;
the bats;
snakes;
hedgehogs;
moles.

Khrushchi are a good bait for fisherman; fish love to eat them for their size and taste.

Diet of adults and larvae

Based on what the cockchafer and its voracious larva feed on, one can determine the extent of potential harmfulness.

Interesting facts about the life of the cockchafer:

How to deal with pests?

Gardeners use comprehensive control measures. In late spring and summer, the larvae crawl closer to warmth, and at this time they dig the ground for planting. It is easy to find them on the surface and destroy them, the number is significantly reduced. Khrushchev do not like nitrogen; experienced gardeners recommend planting white clover around the perimeter of the territory, which makes nitrogen available to the soil.

Insects do not like the smells of lupine, elderberry and cruciferous vegetables (various varieties of cabbage). Attract starlings to the area and feed hedgehogs. Treat the ground with a solution of onion peels. Add husks 1/3 full into the bucket, cover with warm water and leave for 5 days. After this, dilute the solution with water 1:1 and water the soil.

Use industrial insecticides between the rows: Antikhrushch, Nemabakt, Bazudin, Zemlin. They rid greens of pests and are also safe for pets and humans.

Source: adella.ru

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Life cycle

The full life cycle of the cockchafer takes from 3 to 5 years, depending on the climate. For almost all five years, the cockchafer lives underground. The cockchafer flies for a relatively short time, only 30-40 days.

Reproduction

1-3 weeks after emerging from the pupa, the female cockchafer is ready to reproduce. After mating, she soon lays eggs, burrowing into the ground to a depth of about 10 cm. She then feeds, searches for a male and lays eggs again. The total number of eggs is about 70 pieces. The female performs such cycles up to four times, spending a lot of energy. After the last ovipositor, the female dies right in the soil.

Egg

The egg is off-white, 2 mm wide and 3 mm long. It is soft at first and hardens later. The egg develops within 24-35 days. Under unfavorable conditions, development can take up to 50 days.

Larva

The larva of the cockchafer is thick, light-colored, curved. The head is round and light yellow or brown in color. Equipped with 3 pairs of small tenacious paws. The last instar larva reaches a length of 45-65 mm.

Doll

The cockchafer pupa is located in the ground at a shallow depth, in a cradle. The shape resembles an adult beetle with short wings and a head tucked under the chest, the color is yellowish. Its length is 25 mm, width is 18 mm. The pupal phase lasts from 2 weeks to a month. The pupa appears in late July - early August at a depth of 20-40 cm.

Stages of development

During the first summer, the larva feeds on humus and grass roots. In winter, the larvae climb to a depth of one and a half meters, and in the spring they move again closer to the roots.
In the second year, the larvae feed on the roots of young trees.
In the third year, the larvae reach a size of 5-6 centimeters and are able to gnaw the root of even an adult tree.
In the fourth year of life, the larva turns into a pupa, and after a month or two - into a beetle.

The beetles hatched at the end of the season go into suspended animation and remain in the cradle until spring. And closer to May, when it gets warm and leaves appear on the trees, May beetles begin their flights.

External structure

Head

The mouth and sensory organs are placed on it. The mouth consists of jaws and lips - above and below. On the lower ones there are organs of taste and touch in the form of small palps. At the top of the head on the sides are the eyes, which have a complex facet structure.

Above them are antennae ending with 7 plates. The latter are the organs of smell. The entire head is pressed into the prothorax, causing it to tilt downward and not rotate laterally .

Breast

Divided into 3 sections - rear, middle and front. Each has a pair of legs (6 in total), and there are wings . On the dorsal side, the chest is hidden behind the elytra . They protect the soft covers of the back and thin hind wings from damage.

The front wings are much stiffer, so they do not require protection. With its feet, the cockchafer excels at clinging to branches and shoots and them well

The legs are not designed for dexterous walking on flat surfaces, so in such places the beetle moves slowly and awkwardly .

Abdomen

It has a fixed connection to the chest and includes 8 segments. From the back on the sides of the abdomen there are respiratory openings .

External structure of the May Khrushchev - photo:

Fighting Khrushchev with folk remedies and preventing the pest

As a folk remedy for combating cockchafer larvae, one can consider growing lupine on the plot for its further use as green manure. Weeds do not grow on the crops of this crop, and the larvae of the cockchafer have to feed on the roots of lupine, which is poisonous to them.

As a preventive measure against beetles, in the spring you can water the soil around strawberries or in tree trunks with a solution of 10-20 ml of ammonia in 10 liters of water. Or dissolve 200 g of coarse salt and 2 tablespoons of ammonia in a bucket of water and pour this mixture over the beds. Digging up the area in the spring and loosening the soil between rows of potatoes during May and throughout the summer can help in the fight against larvae - at this time the beetles lay eggs, molt and pupate.

A solution of 5 g of potassium permanganate in 10 liters of water, which is used to water the soil around the potato bushes, can protect your crop from beetle larvae, and if you have chickens, drive them out into the potato field - they do an excellent job with the Maybug larvae.

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Morphological description of the species

Purple or blue tank top (Meloe violaceus) is a beetle from the blister family, the genus tank top. The adult is medium in size, body length is 10-32 mm. The head and pronotum are covered with fine punctures. The elytra are short and diverge to the sides. Representatives of the species do not fly, they do not have wings. The head is triangular in shape, the antennae are clear-shaped, and the eyes are kidney-shaped. The abdomen is large, especially swollen in the female. The body color is dark blue and violet. Limbs with prehensile claws and spurs on the shins.

Information. Sexual dimorphism is expressed in the size of the beetles (the female is larger than the male) and the shape of the antennae. In males, the clear-shaped antennae have bizarre growths in the middle.

Distribution area

Purple jersey beetles are found in Central and Southern Europe. The insects are common in Kazakhstan, East Asia, Iran, Afghanistan and North Africa. In Russia they live in the Caucasus, Siberia and the Primorsky Territory.

Reproduction of the lamellar family

From the end of May, beetles begin to actively reproduce. After the “weddings,” the female lays the first 20–30 eggs in the roots of the plants. Buries them and returns to continue mating. During the season, one female brings offspring 3–4 times, and in total the number of eggs reaches 40–60, or even 70 pieces. After this, the mother dies, and the children do not need her further presence.

After a month or a month and a half, the eggs are opened, and larvae emerge from them - large, plump, with a large mouth. For the next three years, in this state, the insect will actively develop, going 1.5 m deeper in the winter, and returning to the upper layers of the soil in the spring.
In the 3rd year (in southern latitudes) or 4th (for regions with a harsh climate), the larva enters the pupal stage in mid-summer, and this period lasts for about a month and a half.
Then the pupa turns into an adult beetle, and continues to remain dormant until spring.
In April - May, when a tunnel is broken, males come to the surface, then females catch up with them. And the cycle begins again: mating, feeding, laying eggs, death of the female, and then the male, development of the larva.