Cockchafer

Male Common Cockchafer (Melolontha melolontha)

When we run the moth trap these days, we're catching a fair few Common Cockchafers (Melolontha melolontha), also known as May Bugs. They're a bit of a pain, really; they bumble around in the trap, crashing into the moths and generally stirring things up. For those who don't run moth traps, these are the large insects that buzz loudly around the garden at dusk and crash into lighted windows on late spring and early summer evenings. Despite their large size (males can measure nearly 1.5 inches long, females slightly smaller), they're harmless to humans. Plants, though, are another story. The beetles actually spend most of their life underground. For three years, they live as fat, brown-headed, white grubs, munching on plant roots. They're particularly fond of grasses, including cereal crops. Considering that we're trying to get rid of much of the rank grass in our garden (slowly, of course), we're not too worried about their presence. And the neighbouring carrot and sugar beet fields shouldn't be much affected either — which is good, because the beetles are capable of pretty significant crop damage. They used to cause tremendous damage to forests and agriculture in Europe. Heavy pesticide use led to them being nearly exterminated by the mid-1900s, though their numbers have been slowly increasing again.

Adults emerge between May and July, feeding on flowers and leaves. The strange name has nothing to do with chickens or body parts. It dates to the 1600s, and means "large, vigorous chafer", a chafer being this sort of large beetle. The combination of black pronotum (the section just behind its head), brown legs, brown elytra (the hard cases that cover its wings) and long, pointed "tail" (not visible in the picture above) help to identify it. The number of fronds on its feathery antenna indicate whether it's a male or female; males have seven fronds, females only six. Common Cockchafers are widespread across much of the British Isles, though less so in northern England and Scotland. They're found in a wide range of habitats, from grassland, heathland and coastal dunes to woodlands, farmlands, gardens and wetlands. We'll be catching them in the trap for a few more months!