Colorado Potato Beetle on Solanaceous Crops

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Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata). Colorado potato beetle can be a serious pest of tomato, eggplant, and pepper. Adult beetles are about 3⁄8 inch long with black and yellow stripes over its back. Each female can lay 500 or more eggs over a four- to five-week period. Eggs hatch in four to nine days and the larvae begin to feed on potato foliage. Larvae are humpbacked with two rows of black spots on each side. They usually feed in groups, and damage can be severe. The larval stage lasts two to three weeks. Full grown larvae burrow in the ground to pupate. In five to 10 days, the adult beetle emerges. This insect can go from egg to adult in as little as 21 days.

Colorado potato beetles.