August 2021
Milkweed Beetle or Longhorn Milkweed Beetle
While tree concerns from freeze damage continued to dominate calls to the BCMGA Help Desk, July and August both saw an uptick in citizens requesting insect identification. With the help of a good loop, blowups from our smart phones and Google lens, we were able to identify everything that came in.
The Milkweed photos came in from two different citizens. The first photo in this set is of the insects on a milkweed pod. Pretty good give away for the Milkweed Beetle or Longhorn Milkweed Beetle. Photo 2 in this set is identified as the nymph stage of this insect and photo two, taken from a swarm on an oak tree is one of the later instars, probably 2nd from size and markings, as they have 5 instars in their life. The adult beetle, is the last instar of the Milkweed Beetle. The advice from the Missouri Botanical Gardens for control on Milkweed is to live with them as they do little damage and are only present for a short period of time. Sanitation will help with overwintering and insecticidal soap is effective if you get good coverage on the insects. Chemical control is discouraged to avoid harm to beneficials.
Milkweed or Longhorn Milkweed Beetle, nymph stage
Milkweed Beetle, Adult
The spider photo came from a citizen whose concern was damage to her oak trees. We thought probably insect damage but asked for some specimens. Damage to the undersides of the leaves and the presence of honeydew confirmed our thought the damage was principally aphids. But we spotted an unidentified live insect on her specimen that was NOT an aphid. Upon close up inspection we found it to be a Jumping Spider—not damaging to her tree but there most likely hunting the suspected aphids.
We can’t have a summer without the ever-present fall Armyworms seen (left) in photo four. To identify these pests, we look at the color, they range from shades of brown to gray, green, or yellow-green, and their most distinguishing characteristics-a whitish inverted Y between the eyes and three whitish stripes on the pronotal shield behind the head. For a complete list of products labeled for fall armyworm control, we suggest that citizens consult the Texas Turfgrass Pest Control Recommendations Guide.
