European Chafer Turf Pest
The European chafer (Rhizotrogus majalis) is a new turf pest to our region and was first identified in New Westminster in 2001. It has been seen throughout Burnaby and other Lower Mainland communities.
Grubs of the European chafer will feed on grass, and may move into vegetable patches to feed on other plants if food is scarce. The damage this causes, combined with the visible damage of skunks, birds and raccoons pulling back your lawn to get at a meal of grubs, make chafer grubs a damaging pest.
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Biology
The European chafer completes its life cycle in one year. Adult chafers (beetles) swarm in mating flights on warm evenings in June and July. The beetles usually fly to tall, vertical structures to mate. Damage to lawns is not caused at this time.
Mated females return to grassy areas to lay eggs below the soil. Eggs hatch in June to early August. The larvae or grubs begin feeding on the fibrous roots of grass. At this time it is common for skunks, raccoons and birds to pull back turf in search of a meal of grubs.
Treatment & Control Options
Since the European Chafer is an exotic pest, there are few natural predators to control its population. European Chafer is here to stay, but with healthy lawn care practices, alternative groundcovers and biological treatment, damage from this pest can be controlled on residential properties.
Control Options
1. Cultural Control – Maintaining a healthy lawn is your first line of defence against grubs. Healthy, vigorously growing lawns can tolerate more grub feeding because they generally have more extensive root systems. Alternative ground covers have been considered by many residents and can be aesthetically pleasing year-round. They require little maintenance. Paving stones or mulch can be considered in high traffic areas. Dutch white clover is one example of a low growing plant that will form a green, durable ground cover that is easy to maintain.
2. Physical/Barrier Controls – Raise your mowing height to 6 to 9 cm (2.5 to 3 inches), since the beetles prefer laying eggs on closely cropped lawns. Higher grass blades will also help to protect the soil surface from water loss during the summer, and encourage deeper root growth.
3. Biological Control – A study commissioned by the Western Turfgrass Association, the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association and several local municipalities (2005), revealed that biological treatments could be very effective at controlling the European chafer population when used in combination with healthy lawn care practices. According to the study, the most effective biological control measure was the natively-occurring nematode (or microscopic roundworm) Heterorhabditis bacteriophora. The H. bacteriophora nematode is a “crusier” species that actively infects and kills white grubs, such as the European chafer grubs. Treatments are most effective if done in late July, after the European chafer eggs have hatched and when the young grubs are most vulnerable to nematode attack.
Learn more about the Chafer, treatment/control options and healthy lawn care practices.
For more information:
- European Chafer Turf Pest Brochure
- Nematode Application and Lawn Alternatives
- Let it Grow, Naturally! – City of Burnaby’s Pesticide Use and Control Program
Contact Us
For other inquiries, or to report the European chafer:
City of Burnaby Engineering Department
Phone: 604-294-7460
engineering@burnaby.ca
