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are better known as white grubs, and these little critters can wreak havoc on lawns and pastures. Note that there are many species of white grubs, most easily distinguished by patterns in their butt hair (thank goodness humans have faces and fingerprints…). Some horrible pests like masked chafer and Japanese beetle also spend their larval lives as white grubs, but June beetles are the biggest of this type of pest.
• White grubs are C-shaped larvae that are entirely subterraneous and eat the roots of many grasses and other plants. When conditions are just right, they can become quite abundant (dozens per ft²) and can completely kill patches of vegetation.
• In general, the damage caused by larvae of June beetles is linked to the behavior of the adults. Adults- and this depends on the species- like to eat certain plants residing in shelterbelts and tree lines. They only fly a certain distance from these plants, and so often grub damage occurs within a certain range of the adult host plants.
• Although they can be pesky, June beetles and white grubs are an important herbivore that helps to shape plant communities in nature. The reason they like lawns is because we have planted a homogeneous mat of their favorite plant, which we then fertilize and water to try to keep alive. White grub damage essentially opens up opportunities for the plant community to diversify. The problem is that many of us only

want a single plant in our yards.
• All of the joys of June are only compounded by this month's insect namesake (except when they fly into your hair or shirt, even I get a little creeped out by that). In fact, the more I think about it, the more it makes me wish that we had an insect of the month throughout the year. An entomologist's work is never done.
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• Jonathan Lundgren is a research entomologist at the USDA-ARS research facility in Brookings, SD. Although interested in all aspects of insect biology, he specializes on reducing crop pests through the use of beneficial insects.