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ENTOMOLOGY: INSECT PESTS [continued]

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  MG Manual Reference
Ch. 3, pp. 39 - 41
[ Insect Pests: ipm | landscape; foliage, sap, trunk, root | turf grass; root, leaf, sap, nuisance | household; structures, living quarters, products | outdoor | citrus | fruits | gardens ]


INSECT PESTS OF TURF GRASS [continued]
SAP FEEDERS Top
Chinch Bug
Chinch Bug
Hemiptera

Chinch Bugs
Both the nymphs and adults of these true bugs suck juices from grass, causing dwarfing, yellowing and eventually death. Adults are black with shiny white wings. They are about 1/3 inch long. Chinch bugs have more than one generation per year and overwinter as adults. They tend to group in one area and cause localized injury particularly to St. Augustine grass.
Homoptera

Greenbug
Greenbugs are light green aphids with a dark green stripe down their backs. They are destructive pests of crops such as wheat, and attack turf grass as well. There are a number of parasites and predators which attack aphids, including ladybeetles.
Rhodesgrass Mealybug
Until recently this insect was called the Rhodesgrass scale, because the adults are purplish brown, round sacs covered with a white, cottony material that look more like scales than mealybugs. The immatures are regular mealybugs, however, with oval cream colored bodies and three pairs of legs. Rhodesgrass mealybugs infest bermudagrass in Arizona, and seem to cause more damage when plants are under stress during hot, dry periods.
Bermudagrass Mite
Bermudagrass Mite
Class Arachnida

Bermudagrass Mite
This mite (not an insect) is a serious pest of bermudagrass. It feeds under the leaf sheaths. The first signs to appear are slight yellowing of the leaf tips and twisting of the leaves. Adults are elongated, and more wormlike in appearance than other mites. They are almost microscopic, barely visible with a 10x or 20x lens. The immatures are called nymphs and are basically miniature adults. Mites complete development in 7-10 days, so can build up in great numbers quickly.
Harvester Ant
Harvester Ant
NUISANCE PESTS Top

Hymenoptera

Ants
Adult ants have a constricted "waist" and their antennae have a distinct bend or elbow. They are several species which may be pests of turf, including the southern fire ant, harvester ants, and wood ants. These ants do not eat grass, but build their homes in the soil under the turf. The mounds they produce may be unsightly, and may interfere with mowing. Some ants may also bite or sting if their nest is disturbed.
Ants are social insects that live in large groups. Baits treated with insecticides often offer the best control because the worker ants carry the poison down into the nest and feed it to all the members of the colony. Homeowners may want to try grinding up three or four orange peels and immediately pouring the slurry down any entrance holes. This method works best on hot summer days.
False Chinch Bug
False Chinch Bug
Hemiptera

False Chinch Bugs
Adults are true bugs less than 1/4 inch long with light grayish wings covering a dark brown to black body. Nymphs and adults feed on weeds such as wild mustard, and may build up to high numbers in wet years in the spring. When the wild vegetation dies in the summer, the false chinch bugs may move into turf areas in "swarms." To prevent false chinch bugs from becoming nuisance pests, control all annual weeds.
Earwig
Earwig
Dermaptera

Earwigs
Earwigs are elongate insects about 1 inch long that resemble certain types of beetles, except for the presence of a pair of forceps-like curved appendages on the rear of their abdomen (the forceps are used for defense and prey handling, and do not harm humans). The adults have short, hardened outer wings and membranous inner wings that fold up under the outer wings. Earwigs are active at night and hide during the day. They do not enter ears, despite superstitions to the contrary. They are sometimes pests of gardens, ornamentals, and small trees but it can also be beneficial because they sometimes prey upon other insects. Earwigs are common in wet areas, and one way to control them is to fix water leaks, and allow areas to dry out between watering.
Springtail
Springtail
Collembola

Springtails
Adults and immatures are generally less than 1/8 inch long and are gray or brown in color. They may be distinguished from other tiny insects because they have a projection or "tail" that they lock under their abdomen and release to "spring."
Springtails need high moisture in order to survive. They may build up to extremely high numbers during wet years or in irrigated areas. When the excess moisture dries up, they are attracted to lights and also to moisture in turf, and they may become severe nuisances on or near golf courses. Sometimes they form swirling "rafts" in swimming pools after they fall in looking for moisture.
Springtail numbers will decrease through natural mortality. Common household insecticides will also kill springtails.
Snail
Snail
Non-Insects

Earthworms, Snails and Slugs
Several non-insect animals may also be pests of turf. Earthworms push up piles of soil that has passed through their digestive system (called "castings") to the surface. These castings may cause problems on golf courses in the early morning before the grass is mowed. Earthworms may be controlled using carbamate insecticides. Otherwise these creatures are more beneficial than harmful, because they aerate the soil by their tunneling activity.
Snails and slugs may also become locally abundant in sites where irrigation is used frequently. Both feed on foliage at night. A sure sign of slugs or snails is a shiny trail of mucus left on leaves or the ground in the morning. Baits are available for snail and slug control at most lawn and garden supply stores (see also Pests of Gardens and Annual Flowers).

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