# Need the help of an amateur entomologist!

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-the-help-of-an-amateur-entomologist/630671>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 6, 2012, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-the-help-of-an-amateur-entomologist/630671 "2012-08-06T23:07:28Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![antonio107](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ea924/32.png) [@antonio107](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antonio107)\
**Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-the-help-of-an-amateur-entomologist/630671/1 "2012-08-06T23:07:28Z")

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Or a professional, provided he or she doesn’t charge me. Anyone who knows bugs, really!

My mother wants to know what these bugs are. I guessed some variety of Beetle:

[![](http://tinypic.com/images/goodbye.jpg) ](http://tinypic.com/images/goodbye.jpg)

Found them in the backyard around our beloved tomatoes, here in Eastern Ontario. Shimmery back, with a color I can best describe as “Auburn.” They can fly. Six legs each.

Any guesses? Thanks! 🙂

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**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\
**Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-the-help-of-an-amateur-entomologist/630671/2 "2012-08-06T23:17:23Z")

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[Japanese beetles.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_beetle)

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2012, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-the-help-of-an-amateur-entomologist/630671/3 "2012-08-07T01:07:02Z")

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> [@beowulff](#):
>
> [Japanese beetles.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_beetle)

Agreed.

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**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2012, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-the-help-of-an-amateur-entomologist/630671/4 "2012-08-07T01:51:51Z")

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Agreed. They will munch on things that you don’t want them to munch on.

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**Author:** ![antonio107](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ea924/32.png) [@antonio107](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antonio107)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2012, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-the-help-of-an-amateur-entomologist/630671/5 "2012-08-07T04:14:21Z")

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> [@capybara](#):
>
> Agreed. They will munch on things that you don’t want them to munch on.

So, I’m noticing…

I don’t suppose any of you wise dopers have a solution for murdering my Oriental visitors, do you? The linked wikipedia article above doesn’t sound too encouraging (I.e., you can destroy the larva in 1-5 years :()

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**Author:** ![capybara](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/capybara/32/202_2.png) [@capybara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capybara)\
**Post date:** [August 7, 2012, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-the-help-of-an-amateur-entomologist/630671/6 "2012-08-07T12:08:53Z")

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The ‘traps’ are a bad idea-- they just lure them in. There’s a fungus (?) treatment called ‘milky spore’ that will do it.