If the birds and other mammals such as Badgers and Foxes are dining out on your lawn then this is one of the reasons why your lawn might be suddenly listed on the Egon Ronay 'Good Lawn Food Guide'....
What are they after?
Chafer Beetle Larvae are the larvae of the Common Chafer Beetle or more commonly known as the May Bug that can be seen flying around on warm early summer evenings. Chafer grubs are white, comma shaped, fleshy grubs with brown heads and 3 pairs of legs on the front segments of their body. Grubs live for 1-3 years before adult beetles emerge. Patches of dead or dying grass similar to that caused by leatherjackets are caused by the grubs. Early and correct pest identification is important
When a pest problem is suspected, the turf should be examined thoroughly to find the culprit. Pests are often found first in stressed areas, such as the edges of lawns or in shady or wet areas. They are not usually distributed evenly so it is advisable to look for spots that have discoloured, stunted or distorted turf. Insects tend to proceed outward from a central point; therefore they are generally most active on the outside edge. Part the leaves of the grass and look into the thatch layer.
Go on, be brave and set about exploring in the soil beneath the grass roots…
The larvae feed on the roots of grasses during the spring and summer. They cause yellow/brown patches and, as the grasses are eaten off at the same level, it may well be that a complete carpet of turf can be removed in tact. There are usually less numerous and less troublesome than leatherjackets but their presence is usually seen the first time the lawn gets stressed by cold or drought by the frenzied activity of large birds like Crows, Rooks and Magpies. The net result – no grass roots, no grass and a lot of ripped up areas once the birds have gone! The adults and grubs have many predators: birds, badgers, moles and even foxes and these cause damage to the turf areas when they are foraging for their food.Chafer Beetle Larvae live a little deeper the root zone than Leatherjackets which reside in the upper root zone. Get your garden or pen knife out and dig below the surface to locate some, preferably in an area that adjoins an area where the birds have been pecking. If present in the soil, you will discover the larvae in a little self made hollow in the soil. The eggs are laid in soil in the late spring by the adults in batches of 10 – 30.
What do the adults look like?
The adult Cockchafer is up to 35 mm long. It has a black thorax, rusty brown wing cases and brown legs, and the tail end of the abdomen is narrowly pointed. In side view, the abdomen has saw-tooth shaped patches of white under the edges of the wing cases. The fan-like tips of the antennae are particularly obvious in this species.
Control measures
There is little or any benefit renovating and repairing any damage to your lawn until you have killed the larvae. As Chafers live in the soil for up to three years you can have more than one generation in the soil at any given time. Control them by applying an insecticide as soon as you have performed a positive identification, usually in the growing season – April to September. Prevention is always better than cure so once one application has been performed, repeat annually in the if repeat outbreaks are common particularly in light sandy soil areas.
Amateur Control Measures - Visit this web link Provado Lawn Pest Killer
Professional Control Measures - Weed Free - Contract Pesticide Application Services
Pictures and part text copyright acknowledged – Bayer Environmental Science & The Royal Entomological Society.
A downloadable .PDF version Chafer Beetle Larvae is available here
What are chafer beetles attracted to ...the lure to put into the traps....what attracts them to the trap rather than the grass
Reply: The trap has pheromones in it to attract the female adults before they lay eggs in your lawn. Vitax as a brand supply them.
Posted by: John wilson | June 26, 2021 at 20:15
Is it true that the EU takes these chemical Al's off the shelves just for fun - or have they been tested for safety and found wanting?
Reply - just for fun it appears because they still use the same actives in the USA and Australia.
Don't they have Bees too?
Posted by: David C | March 21, 2019 at 08:50
Researching Green Thumb and the chemical content of their own lawn treatment products. Unsurprisingly couldn't find anything meaningful. My neighbour uses them. His lawn is harsh looking, almost artificial with plastic looking grass leaf. No birds feed on it...ever - not even blackbirds. We don't use anything and wildlife thrives in/on/around it. Frankly, we all need to get real - bees and insects (birds will follow) are far and away more important than subjecting grass to a toxic shower of hideous man-made chemical concoctions in the so called fight against nature. Live with it. What really pees me off is the slow migration of those chemicals into ground water etc. Try drinking some water with those chemicals in and let me know how you get on!
Reply: I was at a loss what to reply publically so instead voted to reply privately.
Posted by: Neil Middleton | March 05, 2019 at 21:56
Is there any point in treating Chafer grubs or should I take up the lawn and replace it with something else?
Reply - Yes as they will strip a lawn of it's vital roots and cover of turf. Use Nemasys Nematode Biological Control - see Gren Gardener online.
Posted by: Liz | August 28, 2018 at 21:41
Many lawns in my area have been totally destroyed over the past 3-4 years by chafer beetle. The beetles arrive in huge swarms each night for about a week late May. The damage occurs when the crows start pecking the grubs and damage the turf. This attracts the raccoons who will literally roll up the turf and clear a lawn overnight. Nematodes are recommended by the city vector dept. but they only work if they are from a local supplier (unfrozen) and used the last two weeks in July. The BEST method I've seen was a guy covered his entire lawn with landscape cloth and weighted it down with planters for the weeks that the chafer is around and he has a beautiful clean untouched lawn this year. Val BC. Canada.
Reply - Use Bayer Merit 70WP - see Ebay.com for supply. We cannot use it in the EU thanks to the EU Ministers banning the product but it has label approval in the USA and Canada.
Posted by: Val | August 26, 2018 at 18:12
Hello,
I live in Portugal, and last year i had lots of summer chafers in my garden, between early June to theend of July.
I just found a brand that sells a product with Imidacloprid granulate. When should my gardener do the application?
Thanks
Reply: Now would be a good time and again in the autumn. Pheromone Traps are good for attracting the adult beetles before they can lay their eggs.
http://www.agralan-growers.co.uk/pheromone-traps-10-c.asp
Posted by: Isabel Sousa de Macedo | May 04, 2017 at 12:37
Hi my whole street has the Chafer Beetle and have destroyed almost everybody's grass lawn apart from our back garden, which I just cannot believe as the neighbours either side have the Chafer beetle and have ruined there lawns, our lawn so far is okay, we moved into the house in Nov 16. Now our back garden has a very large compost heap and I have read that alot of people have the chafer beetle in the compost heap, we have not touched the compost heap but we did wonder if they prefer the compost heap to our grass? any thoughts? green thumb who we normally use to maintain grass will not maintain our grass due to the streets issue with the chafer beetle, they say nothing can be done. What would people advise as a preventative measure please?
Reply - there are no pesticide controls (thanks to the EU) of Chafer Beetle or Leatherjacket Larvae until we can get our UK Pesticide laws back from this Brexit concept. The only route is Biological Nematodes from online Green Gardener. Keep an eye on this blog as as soon as this problem may be solved, we will be writing about it. There are Garden Chafer Pheromone traps that you can buy to trap the adult females before they lay their eggs in your lawn. The only problem is that there could be up to three generations of Chafers in your lawn at any time so the adult traps take a while to work.
Posted by: Craig English | April 11, 2017 at 12:56
Hi can someone tell me if I lay some small gauge netting (4-5 mm) over my lawns will this be small enough to stop the chafer bug getting out or getting back to the lawn?
I just need to know the size of the Bug when it's ready to lay its eggs! I will leave the lawn long for the netting to sit on the top!
From mid may to june
Reply - you can try and stop the adults laying. We would be interested in your success feedback!
Posted by: Alec Bentley | March 19, 2017 at 04:38
Can I use a product like bugs away from the USA in the U.K. Same as merit turf or is this banned many thanks a frustrated Lawn carer. Please email me.
Reply - we did email you direct yesterday. Search Ebay.com for Imidacloprid / Merit.
Posted by: Malcolm Foster | October 26, 2016 at 20:33
You have been very helpful 😊 Thank you very much , Sandrina
Reply: Thank you!
Posted by: Sandrina Cockman | October 20, 2016 at 15:10
I have the dreaded chafer larvae and my lawn looks awful as of course the crows are eating them but not quickly enough! Have lived here 26 years and never had them til this year. What do you suggest I do, will the winter kill them off??
Reply: Sorrey to bring you the bad news. As there are no chemical controls available, thanks to our Ministers accepting EU legislation, only Biological control by way of Nemsys Nematodes, you will continue to have Chafer Beetle Larvae until they are controlled or naturally die off. We could do with a really hard cold winter.
Posted by: Sheena Wooding | September 13, 2016 at 08:51
Does anyone know if Malathion will work to kill the Chafer Beatle?
Reply - It is important to follow the pesticide label and field of use as detailed on that label. Malathion is an Organophosphate insecticide and GAMMA HCH was one of these but all are banned for use in the UK thanks to the EU intervention.
http://www.domyownpestcontrol.com/msds/55%20Malathion%20Spray%20Approved%202-27-13-1.pdf
Posted by: Chance | June 08, 2016 at 20:53
I think I have some pests in the middle of my lawn. For the last two years the magpies dug the area and left patches. I kept on putting seeds and lawn feed and this year the lawn looked better. But now the magpies just started to come there to feed. One day I saw even two crows. As these magpies live on two trees. How can I avoid birds digging there again. I have not seen beetles or grubs in that area
Thanks
Reply - you may have had Leatherjackets and / or Chafer Beetle larvae in your lawn. Bird scarers, hand CDs from bamboo canes. A Water Scare Crow is very effective.
Posted by: mary soyza | May 07, 2016 at 08:58
Help. We have been told that we have Chafer grubs on our front lawn but our back lawn is fine. Would we transfer them to our back lawn if we use the same mower.?
Reply - No. Sadly because of the EU, there is currently no chemical control of Chafer Beetle Larvae available in the UK. Use Nematodes from Green Gardener
Posted by: David Kay | April 10, 2016 at 12:45
We have had trouble with chafer grubs in our containers, and couldn't work out why. We make our own compost, and turning the pile just now I have found scores, hundreds maybe, of chafer eggs about six inches down. I do not wish to use any chemicals, but wonder if turning the compost repeatedly and exposing these eggs to the for a week or so will render the eggs non-viable? (I'm in Turkey, so the sun is hot).Any help greatly appreciated!
Reply - are you sure the grubs in the tubs are not Vine Weevil? Treat with Imidacloprid or Bayer Provado if you can get it in Turkey but it has been withdrawn in the UK as it is meant to be harming the pollinators. Failing this use a nematode to kill the vine weevil. Available from Green Gardener in the UK and online.
Posted by: Pauline | April 03, 2016 at 12:21
Will chafer grubs survive in artificial grass?
Reply - They should not find anything to eat if there are no grass roots!
Posted by: yvonne | March 14, 2016 at 15:23
Hi. I have chafers for last 3 years over a large area (1.5 acres). I have had rooks rip the grass up getting to the bugs. Also treat ment for this size garden is very expensive so have just had to wait until they clear off! Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.
Reply - the lovely people at the EU have put a temporary ban on the insecticide Imidacloprid as they state it is harming the bees. Best advice is there is no approved control in the UK until things change but searches of the active ingredient in one of those well known shopping sites may yield supplies in the USA. A lot of Turf Managers will be voting OUT of the EU in June.
Posted by: Linda | February 25, 2016 at 18:04
is the little soil that sticks out and has a hole in it,these worms,i haven't found any yet, but im getting patches of dead grass, prob is my dog loves lying on it, can he get ill.
Reply - you will need to do a positive ID for insect larvae in the lawn.
Posted by: dave | October 30, 2015 at 23:03
Birds have damaged large areas of our lawn and a professional has advised that there are leather jackets in the lawn and it needs proper treatment and renovation of the damaged areas.
This will be costly and as it is expensive rented accommodation we would appreciate advice as to when the renovation should be done and also if we should be paying the bill or the owner.
Reply - you are rentiing the property and taking ownership during your time t here for the garden and on going maintenance costs, unless the lawn needs replacing etc. Ask a lawn company to come around and treat it as you will not have a lawn in the spring time.
Posted by: Sheila Green | September 17, 2015 at 16:53
Hi we have Chafer Beetles coming down our chimney, they take forever to die when in a sealed bottle, I have children and worry if the sting or bite as I can't seem to find out that information, any help would be fantastic.
Reply - blimey, they must have nested. To my knowedge they don't bite. Contact a Pest Control Company if you are concerned.
Posted by: sharon | June 29, 2015 at 22:42
I have had these pests (Chafer Beetles) in my lawn now for about three years.Just found your page so going to try some of your advice.The othere thing I have found with the adult of the these beetles they eat my Rose heads when there in bloom and kill the flower.Is there anything that I can do to prevent this on my roses.Thank you
Reply - ask your lawn company to apply BAYER Merit Turf to control the larvae. Do it in the autumn and again in the spring time when the larvae are closest to the surface of the lawn eating your roots!
Posted by: Linda | June 21, 2015 at 09:31
I have chafer bugs in my lawn. I have past treated with Provada Grub Killer. But now we can not purchase as it has been banned. How do we treat. Any advice welcome.
Reply - ask your lawn care company to apply BAYER Merit which is the same active as Bayer Provado.
Posted by: Margaret Grainger | June 17, 2015 at 19:33
Hi, I think i have these adult chafer beetles, they come out on a warm day flying around, absolutely loads of them. There is also loose bits of soil (like mounds) that have appeared in the grass? Is this where they live? If so can i just pour insecticide on them? Thanks
Reply - Reply - ask your lawn treatment company to apply BAYER Merit Insecticide or use Nematodes from Green Gardener Online.
Posted by: Rachael. T | June 15, 2015 at 15:12
I have loads & loads of Chafer Beetles on my lawn what can I treat lawn with before it disappears.
Reply - ask your lawn treatment company to apply BAYER Merit Insecticide ir use Nematodes from Green Gardener Online.
Posted by: shirley webster.england united kingdom | June 08, 2015 at 10:43
Aarrggghhh please help.
I've just found lots of what I think are chafer grubs. They are smallish & curled up in a ball so I can't see the legs, but they do have the light brown head. They were in a compost only pot that had my strawberries in, I only found them because the strawberry plants had died. Obviously I need to get rid of the pots contents but I just wondered if anyone had any advice of the best and safe way to. I have pets and a toddler.
Thanks
REPLY: Thanks, Kelly, They sound like Vine Weevil to me. You need a control product with Imidacloprid in it but currently the EU have banned it as it is apparently affecting the Bee population.
Posted by: Kelly | March 30, 2015 at 10:49
We have removed our sad lawn and found hundreds of chafer grubs, which we have picked out and destroyed. Will it be safe to lay new turf or do we need to do anything else.
Reply: Get a lawn professional over to apply Bayer Merit Insecticide to make sure they are dead and gone otherwise laying a new lawn on an infested soil would be bad news.
Posted by: Elaine Taylor | September 16, 2014 at 22:57
Hi I have been asked by a new customer to cut her grass however she has told me that her lawn has an infestation of Chafer grubs . If I cut her lawn am I likely to spread it yo other customers which I obviously don't want to do .thanks. Bill
Reply: Hi Bill, mowing the lawn will not make any difference to the insect infestation apart from tidying up some of the bird pecked areas. Ask a turf professional to come around and apply Merit Turf, that is only available to professional users.
Posted by: Bill Morris | July 28, 2014 at 09:25
chafer grub treatment is available in nottinghamshire through .
www.catchers-pest-control.c-.uk
Posted by: christopher milnes | May 16, 2014 at 21:27
I have had chafer beetles for two years but was unaware what they were until finding your web page to read up on caring for a new lawn.....
We have just re turfed the lawn but I'm now worried the beetles will come back so is it safe to use the insecticide on a newly laid lawn and if so what month should I be using it?
Thank you for anticipated reply
Reply - sadly now Bayer Lawn Grub Killer is no longer available to domestic lawn owners, you will need to enlist the services of a local lawn treatment company to apply an insecticide that only professionals can apply called Merit Turf.
Posted by: D Montague | April 17, 2014 at 20:04
Hi all. Have had a problem with our bowling green now for the past 6 weeks, ie, crows or rooks digging holes all over the green, even after spraying with carbendazim 5 weeks ago, thinking they were after worms that the wet weather had brought to the surface. Are they after chafer grubs, or something else?. what do I spray on to get the birds to stop?. I haven't dug into the green to investigate as yet, should I do this first?
Reply - the birds may be after the worms. I suspect they are pretty hungry. It may be Leatherjackets or Chafer Beetle Larvae too. Best have a little look below the crown of the turf grass plants to see if you can get a positive ID.
Posted by: Bill Smith | March 01, 2014 at 17:30
How deep will the chafer grubs dig, am I better digging out my lawn and starting again?
Reply - never dig them out. Treat with Bayer Provado when it comes back on the shelves in a years time, unless you can buy any currently from a garden retail stockist.
Posted by: Alistair livingstone | January 16, 2014 at 16:07
Mr Mole Man visited a customer in Shropshire last year the mole had caused extensive damage to his lawn searching for the chafer grubs and then to cap it off the birds came in to feed. The only way to allow the grass to be treated and reseeded was to humanely trap the mole using a claw trap.
Posted by: Mr Mole Man | January 07, 2013 at 19:13
I have found 20+ chafer grubs in my compost heap. If I take them all out will it be ok to use the compost?
Reply- yes but I bet there are more. Spray Bayer Provado Lawn Grub Killer on the compost heap. Are you sure they are Chafer Beetle Larvae that have three pairs of legs and not stumps. You can get all sorts of grubs that look like Chafers in garden. Do they look like the pictures in the Blog Post?
Posted by: sliding door repair | April 04, 2012 at 13:46
You raise a lot of questions in my head; you wrote an excellent post, but this post is also mind provoking, and I will have to think about it a bit more; I will return soon.
Reply - thank you. Come back soon
Posted by: Barcelona Corporate Flats | August 01, 2011 at 10:23
I live in the south of France and have found lots of these large white grubs in the soil and compost heap.They would appear to be the grubs of a beetle.Worse still ,I have found the living in the centre of some of my small palms in the garden and they have eaten the young growth and killed the plants.Would systemic insecticide be effective to remove them ?
Posted by: Graeme Possnicker | January 31, 2011 at 16:26
While this subject can be very touchy for most people, my opinion is that there has to be a middle or common ground that we all can find. I do appreciate that you've added relevant and intelligent commentary here though. Thank you!
Posted by: Bail Bondsman Los Angeles | November 16, 2010 at 07:47
Just found these all over my Lawn. Bit worried as have a Rabbit. Guess they shouldn't bother him but need to be able to treat without reverting to pesticides. Any ideas?
Posted by: Craig | June 22, 2010 at 12:51
I am trying to identify the beetles in my garden. they appeared approx 3 days ago in the grass,the grass had just been cut. the beetles appear to be lively when the sun is out and fly around,they also look like they are constantly breeding. at night time they look as if they have gone and a lot have died but by the next day this is not the case and there are hundreds of them. the picture you have on here of the adult is exactly how they look.
if they are from the chafer grub how do i treat the grass when i have children and pets?
thanks,
Jude.
Answer - you have the young Chafer Beetles that have recently emerged from the lawn. They will soon be flying around, banging on the patio door windows. You cannot kill the adults when they are on the wing but you could purchase an adult catcher, a bit like a wasp watcher. Get them from http://www.oecos.co.uk/pheromone.htm. They worm on attracting the adults by the use of pheromones. In the autumn months, apply Bayer Provado and re apply in the middle of the spring before the adults emerge. The larvae have been feeding on your lawn eating the grass roots which will lead to stress. Fertilise the lawn. See www.thelawnshop.co.uk.
Posted by: Jude Roberts | June 17, 2010 at 11:37
My lawn began to be torn up by crows 2 to 3 years ago. I found the white grubs when I repaired the lawn, but didn't know what they were. On returning from holiday a few days ago I discovered hundreds of beetles appearing all over the lawn whenever the sun comes out. This has been going on for several days now. At least I now know what they are and will take appropriate action.
Reply - Glad we were able to help. Tell your friends!
Posted by: Jackoviejo | June 16, 2010 at 12:20
Hello, thanks you for comment and input, the grubs you have found may not be Chafer Grubs but the grubs that live in old rotten wood and trees. It would be sae to use the compost thouge as you could discard any that you spot in the process of moving the compost.
Posted by: Mike Seaton | November 05, 2009 at 17:46
I have found 20+ chafer grubs in my compost heap. If I take them all out will it be ok to use the compost?
Posted by: L.ROTA | November 05, 2009 at 16:40