Hunting billbug (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) life cycle and damaging life stage in North Carolina, with notes on other billbug species abundance.

In the southeastern United States, hunting billbug, Sphenophorus venatus vestitus Chittenden, adults are often observed in turfgrass, but our knowledge of their biology and ecology is limited. Field surveys and experiments were conducted to determine the species composition, life cycle, damaging life stage, and distribution of billbugs within the soil profile in turfgrass in North Carolina. Linear pitfall trapping revealed six species of billbug, with the hunting billbug making up 99.7% of all beetles collected. Data collected from turf plus soil sampling suggest that hunting billbugs have two overlapping generations per year in North Carolina and that they overwinter as both adults and larvae. Field experiments provided evidence that adult hunting billbugs are capable of damaging warm season turfgrasses.

Species composition and seasonal occurrence of Phyllophaga (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) infesting intensely managed Bermudagrass in Oklahoma.

Larvae of Phyllophaga spp. (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) are important turfgrass pests in many regions of the United States. However, not all of the species associated with turfgrass are known, including species most likely to be of economic concern in Oklahoma turfgrasses, especially Bermuda grass. This study documented the species composition and seasonal occurrence of Phyllophaga associated with high maintenance Bermuda grass turf in Oklahoma over a 2-yr period. In 2005 and 2006, adult Phyllophaga spp. were collected with blacklight traps from selected golf courses throughout Oklahoma Phyllophaga larvae were obtained from Bermuda grass stands at selected sod production facilities adjacent to or near the light traps. We collected 20 species of Phyllophaga beetles in light traps, and nine species of Phyllophaga larvae from turfgrass. Peak flight periods for most species occurred in May and June, but some were captured as early as mid-April and others as late as September. The cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) gene from adults and larvae was amplified using polymerase chain reaction, sequenced, and then used to compare larval DNA against DNA from identified adults. These results confirmed the validity of using COI sequences to identify species of some Phyllophaga larvae. The identifications will aid in optimizing the timing of insecticide applications against Phyllophaga white grubs as discussed.