That Beetle is no Lady!

There are times when we take action for a very good reason, and regardless of our good intentions, those actions backfire on us. 

Cane Toads were brought to Australia to protect sugar cane but ended up destroying other wildlife. Mongooses were brought to Hawaii to get rid of rats but preferred native ground-nesting birds and their eggs. And one of the worst examples – predatory snails were introduced to control an overrun of escargot snails in French Polynesia. Unfortunately, they killed off 48 other species of snails and left the target species nearly untouched. 

It happens less often these days with insects, but here in Florida just a generation ago, we tried it again. And now, as the mercury edges lower (or will eventually), we have to protect our homes from a good idea gone bad.

Good Girls Gone Wild

Ladybugs are native to Florida and many cultures consider them good luck. But around 1990, in an effort to protect farmers’ crops from aphids, scale, and a couple other destructive bugs, we introduced a close cousin to Coccinella septempunctata, the multi-colored Asian beetles. 

The Asian beetles did their job, but they also reproduced far more rapidly than expected. Now they will often swarm, looking for lighter colored houses to infiltrate and spend the winter. And since stucco rarely comes in dark tones, that means almost every house here on the Suncoast. 

Asian beetles will enter, find vents, attics, crawl spaces and burrow into the walls and hang out until June or July, at which point, they can virtually explode into the rest of your home. Bear in mind, these beetles don’t do any structural damage, nor are they anything more than a nuisance – unless you try stomping on them. 

The fear response for Harmonia axyridis involves secreting a nasty smelling yellow substance that stains everything it touches. When you squish them, you get it on your shoe or newspaper and whatever the beetle was sitting on. If you chase them with a vacuum hose, they’re liable to release it while airborne. 

We should also note that multicolored Asian beetles leave behind a pheromone when they exit your house. This enables them to find it again later, and once you’ve had one winter with them, expect to see them popping back in like insect snowbirds hoping to crash in your guest room.

The Spots to Look Out For

So, how do you tell the good bugs from the bad? Well, for starters, ladybugs show up in ones and twos. Multicolored Asian beetles tend to come in bunches. Some swarms number in the thousands. 

The next thing to look for is their unique spot pattern. The most popular Florida ladybugs are typically bright red with a rounded body, usually with 7 uniformly spread spots on their hard outer wings. There are some ladybugs that are orange or yellow and a few that even have stripes or up to 20 spots. But generally, you’ll see the red 7 spotted variety. 

Multicolored Asian beetles come in… multiple colors. They may be brown, yellow, orange, red or even sometimes pink! They may have spots or may not. They tend to be slightly more angular than what we think of as ladybugs. 

But the most identifiable, tell-tale marking that guarantees you are looking at an Asian beetle is on the light part of their heads. Look closely, and you’ll see closely crowded spots on the white or cream colored area above their wings that looks like an M or a W, depending on which angle you’re seeing it from. 

Asian beetles are also more aggressive. While a ladybug may land on you to rest and then flit away, Asian beetles are more likely to chomp down on you and may cause an allergic reaction for some.

Not in My House!

The best defense against a swarm of multicolored Asian beetles is a good offense. Prepare now and you won’t have to worry later. The goal of Asian beetles is to get inside your home. Stop them by sealing up any available entry points. These can include where your phone line used to come into the house as well as your electric and cable wires, and cracks in window or door seals. 

Use a tight mesh to cover external vents for dryers or those under your eaves for eliminating warm air. Because of the warm temperature, those will be particularly of interest to Asian beetles. 

You can also invest in a good pest control solution with a company that inspects your home before they treat it for bugs. For more than three decades now, Good News Pest Solutions has done just that. Our most popular solution, Go Green Perimeter Plus starts with recommending sealing those access points, and ends with the safest, most natural treatments we can find. We also eliminate ants, spiders and roaches. For more details, or to schedule your first appointment for inspection, please give us a call!