Species guide
Japanese beetle
HarmlessPopillia japonica
How to recognise it
A ~1 cm beetle with a metallic green head and thorax, copper-brown wing covers, and small tufts of white hair poking out along each side of the abdomen.
Is it dangerous?
Harmless to people. It's a serious garden pest, though — adults skeletonize leaves and grubs damage lawn roots.
What to do
Hand-pick into soapy water in the early morning. Avoid pheromone traps — they tend to attract more beetles than they catch.
Recorded 157,965 times in the wild worldwide.
Think you've spotted one?
Photograph it and let SpecieSense confirm the species — and show you the reasoning.
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