Plague soldier beetles

[anttal63]

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=gre ... 8C&first=1

They are in plague proportions in some areas of Vic. They do a hell of a lot of damage on Pines especially JBP. They unravel the sheath and im guessing they chew around the base of the needles, resulting in the needles falling out very easily. I would also imagine that this causes damage to future buds. I have been running around the garden each morning for the last 2 weeks picking them off and squashing them. This weekend has been the worst, heaps of them. They do park on other trees but im sure they are just waiting for me to leave so they can jump back on my JBP's. They also like Juniper and i think they do the same thing there. Who ever has pines out there and sees these in their garden do not be fooled that they are harmless, they are not !!!

[Boics]

Thanks for the tip.

I often see clouds of these guys from time to time.....
Haven't spotted any in my backyard as yet but will keep a watch...

[anttal63]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soldier_beetle

According to this article they are a gardners best friend

[alpineart]

Hi anttal63 , mate we have had several swarms in the millions from one end of town to the main river . They are more interested in the Eucalyptus flowers "Yellow and Red Box" "Red Gum" than anything else around here , have had no issue with any pine species in the yard although all were sprayed with Rogor just prior to the plagues . They do squirt a solution onto the skin when handled or trapped inside clothing and it can cause a severe burning effect enough to cause blistering of the skin .

My young bloke is very sensitive to their spray and comes up in a 50mm red patch which turns into a small blisters . The plagues were here for about 2 weeks then disappeared 2-3 weeks ago .

Cheers Alpine

[Mojo Moyogi]

Ahh....to snuff or not to snuff........that is the question?

Cheers,
Mojo

[Boics]

Interesting Ant.

Everything I briefly read this morning would lead me to believe that maybe these guys aren't your culprits?

[buzza]

I have had thousands of them all over my trees prior to Xmas, but no damage to any pines. (JBP, JWP, red pine and radiata)

[anttal63]

Wrong again Thanks to all of you for your reply. I feel terrible that i necked so many of them Maybe they are trying to get the culprits. I went out and looked over with a magnifying glass and only came across this guy who i cant identify. as well as on the ends of the needles i would often find the soldier beetle head down at the base of the needles and hence what lead me to believe it was them.

unidentified bug

2013-01-21-787.jpg

needles that almost fall off when touched

2013-01-21-780.jpg

Roughed up sheath's

2013-01-21-788.jpg

[Dario]

Hi Antonio, you had me worried for a bit there as Ken posted a thread on them a few weeks back that said they were harmless.
Anyway glad to know they are not creating the damage as I have had masses of them too, although lately they have tapered off and I think it is due to their short life span.
I have had the same issues this season with pine needles being chewed and dropping off. It has had me baffled as to the culprit. After purchasing a magnifying glass and many late night stake outs I have narrowed it down to a couple of candidates...
I have had so many issues with caterpillars this season and have tried a few different sprays with not much luck. But I always find tiny caterpillars at the base of needles that hide in the sheath and are very hard to see.
The other pest that definitely chews the base of needles and also hides in new buds that are unfurling is a black insect that looks very much like a flea, and is of a similar size too. It can fly but mostly seems to crawl around. Still unsure as to what it is and I have no pics, but it is a tough bugger...you really need to squish it hard to kill it.
I know you regularly spray and also use Rogor so I am a little unsure if it could be caterpillars?
Thanks for the info on the spray from the soldier beetles Alpine, I will be more careful around them.
Cheers, Dario.

[anttal63]

Hi Antonio, you had me worried for a bit there as Ken posted a thread on them a few weeks back that said they were harmless.
Anyway glad to know they are not creating the damage as I have had masses of them too, although lately they have tapered off and I think it is due to their short life span.
I have had the same issues this season with pine needles being chewed and dropping off. It has had me baffled as to the culprit. After purchasing a magnifying glass and many late night stake outs I have narrowed it down to a couple of candidates...
I have had so many issues with caterpillars this season and have tried a few different sprays with not much luck. But I always find tiny caterpillars at the base of needles that hide in the sheath and are very hard to see.
The other pest that definitely chews the base of needles and also hides in new buds that are unfurling is a black insect that looks very much like a flea, and is of a similar size too. It can fly but mostly seems to crawl around. Still unsure as to what it is and I have no pics, but it is a tough bugger...you really need to squish it hard to kill it.
I know you regularly spray and also use Rogor so I am a little unsure if it could be caterpillars?
Thanks for the info on the spray from the soldier beetles Alpine, I will be more careful around them.
Cheers, Dario.

Dario thanks for that !!! Yes i am spraying on average every 3 weeks but now with the hotter weather and winds ??? And yes lots of different caterpillars around, my tridents know about it... The damage on the pines is minimal realistically however it was always the worry that it might be the start of something bigger. Any ways thats the least of the problems i got loads of wire to get off my trees