Japanese beetle
This single species has been reported feeding on more than 300 kinds of plants since arriving in North America over a century ago.
| Where | Gardens, turf, and farmland |
|---|---|
| Size | 10 to 15 mm body length |
| When | June to September |
The Japanese beetle is a small, metallic green beetle with coppery brown wing covers and small tufts of white hair along the sides of its body, visible when the wings are folded.
Grubs live in soil and feed on grass roots through summer and fall, while adults feed in groups on leaves and fruit above ground, and the species has spread through most states east of the Mississippi River since first being found in New Jersey in 1916.
Traits
Habitat
Towns
Colour
Green, Metallic, Brown
Active
Day
To people
Does not sting or bite; adults can be picked off plants by hand as a control measure.
Activity through the year
Often confused with
Similar mottled brown and metallic coloring as an adult, but the Oriental beetle is smaller overall, and the two are most reliably told apart as grubs by the arrangement of spines on the underside of the abdomen tip.
Questions
Is the Japanese beetle dangerous to people?
Does not sting or bite; adults can be picked off plants by hand as a control measure.
When can you see the Japanese beetle?
The Japanese beetle can be seen from June to September, by day.
Plate retouched from a photo by Allison Zon, CC BY 4.0, iNaturalist Licence
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Last updated 2026-09-26. Every entry is checked against published sources.