Have you noticed small, rounded beetles that resemble miniature lady beetles crawling your home lately? If so, you may have carpet beetles.
Carpet beetles can be pests in homes, museums, and warehouses, where they feed on food such as fabric, wool carpet and rugs, stored food, and natural animal products including furs, feathers, bone, silk, and preserved specimens.
Adult carpet beetles don't feed on fabrics but instead feed on the pollen and nectar of outdoor plants. However, once they find their way indoors-- which could be through an open door or on cut flowers brought inside-- adults lay their eggs on a food source and within two weeks, their eggs hatch and begin to feed. Larvae feed in dark, secluded places and as...
Goldspotted oak borer. First identified in eastern San Diego County in 2004, the goldspotted oak borer, Agrilus auroguttatus, has killed over 25,000 California native red oaks since its arrival and has now been detected in Riverside County. Larvae feed deep within the phloem, and adults are rarely seen. Infestations are recognized by the presence of D-shaped exit holes on trees, often accompanied by bark staining and crown decline. There are currently no good ways to manage the pest in moderate to severely infested trees. Contact your agricultural commissioner if you find infestations outside the known infested area.
For more information on this pest, infestation zones, and ways you can help limit the...
- Author: Akif Eskalen
[From the August 2015 issue of the UC IPM Green Bulletin]
Declining coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia) trees have recently been found throughout urban landscapes in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, Santa Barbara, Ventura and Monterey counties. A fungus associated with a specific beetle is causing the decline by spreading what is known as “foamy bark canker disease” (Figures 1 and 2).
The fungal species, Geosmithia pallida, was recovered from symptomatic plant tissues in association with the western oak bark beetle...
/span>- Author: Steven Swain
[From the August 2015 issue of the UC IPM Green Bulletin]
Although pine trees are comparatively drought tolerant, there comes a point where even hardy trees become stressed by lack of water. Stressed pines frequently exhibit symptoms such as thin, slightly yellowish canopies, or roots that "spider" across lawns (Figure 1). By the time pine trees begin turning brown, they are usually dying, but with some precautions, many trees can be saved before they reach this point.
California has a number of native bark beetle species that individually do only minor damage as they...
/span>- Author: Steven Swain
- Author: Karey Windbiel-Rojas
[From the July 2015 issue of the UC IPM Retail Nursery and Garden Center IPM News]
Pantry pests sometimes find their way into our homes undetected and can infest stored products like flour, cereal, pasta, dried fruit, nuts, and even pet food. Often, by the time these pests are noticed, they have infested and contaminated foodstuffs and may already be reproducing in your home, making management difficult. Below are some tips to help you clean up, monitor, and prevent pantry pest problems.
What are Pantry Pests?
Beetles and moths are the two...
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