Western spotted cucumber beetle

Western spotted cucumber beetles are yellowish-green, about one-quarter inch long, with eleven black spots on wing covers. Adults chew small, irregular holes in rose, hibiscus, and dahlia foliage. The beetles aggregate on flower buds and leaves throughout summer. Damage is primarily cosmetic on ornamental plants, though feeding weakens flower and leaf tissue.

Hand-pick beetles from ornamental plants during morning hours when they are sluggish. Remove infested flowers and buds to reduce adult populations. Reflective row covers on vegetables prevent beetle access. For aesthetic damage on high-value ornamentals, spinosad applied to foliage provides suppression. Most populations are naturally controlled by parasitoid wasps and predatory ground beetles.