{"id":10446,"date":"2020-04-22T17:20:39","date_gmt":"2020-04-22T21:20:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/home-and-garden-ipm\/?page_id=10446"},"modified":"2024-07-24T10:23:46","modified_gmt":"2024-07-24T14:23:46","slug":"mexican-bean-beetle","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/home-and-garden-ipm\/fact-sheets\/common-name-listing\/mexican-bean-beetle\/","title":{"rendered":"Mexican Bean Beetle"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Mexican Bean Beetle<\/strong>, Epilachna varivestis<\/em>, is one of two species of ladybug (or ladybird beetle) that is a common pest of vegetables; the other being the Squash Beetle<\/strong><\/a>, also known as the squash lady beetle.\u00a0 The two pests have such similar coloration and spot-patterning that people often confuse them with one another.\u00a0 However, the Mexican bean beetle feeds almost exclusively on legumes, while the squash beetle prefers cucurbits.\u00a0 Bean is the preferred host of the Mexican bean beetle and includes dry beans as well as most varieties of snap beans and lima beans, with snap beans (especially the group called wax beans) being preferred a bit more than lima beans.\u00a0 Mexican bean beetles are about the same size as an average ladybug, whereas squash beetles are nearly double that size.\u00a0 There is a slight color difference as well, with mature<\/em> Mexican bean beetles having a coppery appearance compared to the more yellow or somewhat orange coloration of squash beetles.<\/p>\n

Host plants are damaged by both the larvae as well as the adults, and in fact the larvae cause more damage than do the adult beetles.\u00a0 Both larvae and adults will feed upon the leaves, flowers, and the pods of beans, but it’s the leaves that suffer the most injury, producing a lace-like, skeletonized appearance (larvae feed on the undersides of the leaves, stems or pods).\u00a0 Sometimes blossoms and small pods will be completely destroyed.<\/p>\n\n\t\t