The striped cucumber beetle is a member of the family of leaf beetles. It is a major agricultural pest to cucurbit plants in both its larval and adult stages. Danish zoologist Johann Christian Fabricius first described the species in 1775.
Size: 5.25 mm long; 1.3 mm wide
Color: Its head is either brown or black, the abdomen is black, the prothorax is yellow. The most prominent coloration is its brownish-yellow elytra covering the whole abdomen, intersected by three black lines running longitudinally.
Other Characteristic Features: They have a striped appearance, alongcol3 slender, long antennae.
They look like slender white worms with dark heads. They are 1.3 mm in length in the first instar, reaching almost 1 cm by the final stage. The total development period is around 2-4 weeks.
Pupae are white and 8-10 mm long. They appear broad towards the anterior part of their body, tapering out into a narrow shape at the posterior end.
The eggs are orange, oval-shaped, and have a textured surface. They are 0.60 mm long x 0.36 mm wide, with a total 5-9 days incubation period.
| Lifespan | 8 weeks |
| Distribution | The Rocky Mountains, southern Canada, and northern Mexico |
| Habitat | Field borders, hedgerows, and plant remnants |
| Predators | Soldier beetles, braconid wasps, ground beetles, and some nematodes |
| Seasons active | Spring; they undergo diapause to get through winter |
| Host plants | Cucumber, squash, zucchini, gourd, pumpkin, butternut squash |
| Diet of adults | Pollen and foliage from plants like apple, aster, goldenrod, hawthorn, and willow |
The damage caused by these beetles is observed in the form of defoliation of the host plants. The maximum harm is done when the overwintering beetles emerge.
Image Source: extension.usu.edu, bugguide.net, entnemdept.ufl.edu, freemygreenpdx.com, ag.umass.edu, whygoodnature.com
The striped cucumber beetle is a member of the family of leaf beetles. It is a major agricultural pest to cucurbit plants in both its larval and adult stages. Danish zoologist Johann Christian Fabricius first described the species in 1775.
Size: 5.25 mm long; 1.3 mm wide
Color: Its head is either brown or black, the abdomen is black, the prothorax is yellow. The most prominent coloration is its brownish-yellow elytra covering the whole abdomen, intersected by three black lines running longitudinally.
Other Characteristic Features: They have a striped appearance, alongcol3 slender, long antennae.
They look like slender white worms with dark heads. They are 1.3 mm in length in the first instar, reaching almost 1 cm by the final stage. The total development period is around 2-4 weeks.
Pupae are white and 8-10 mm long. They appear broad towards the anterior part of their body, tapering out into a narrow shape at the posterior end.
The eggs are orange, oval-shaped, and have a textured surface. They are 0.60 mm long x 0.36 mm wide, with a total 5-9 days incubation period.
| Lifespan | 8 weeks |
| Distribution | The Rocky Mountains, southern Canada, and northern Mexico |
| Habitat | Field borders, hedgerows, and plant remnants |
| Predators | Soldier beetles, braconid wasps, ground beetles, and some nematodes |
| Seasons active | Spring; they undergo diapause to get through winter |
| Host plants | Cucumber, squash, zucchini, gourd, pumpkin, butternut squash |
| Diet of adults | Pollen and foliage from plants like apple, aster, goldenrod, hawthorn, and willow |
The damage caused by these beetles is observed in the form of defoliation of the host plants. The maximum harm is done when the overwintering beetles emerge.
Image Source: extension.usu.edu, bugguide.net, entnemdept.ufl.edu, freemygreenpdx.com, ag.umass.edu, whygoodnature.com
