Squash beetle

Epilachna borealis

''Epilachna borealis'' is a species of beetle that can commonly be found in the eastern United States. It is yellow with seven large black spots on each elytron and four small black spots on the pronotum. The species feeds on cucurbitaceous plants. Its common name is Squash beetle.
Squash Lady Beetle These beetles were approximately 6-7mm long. They were orange and had seven large black spots on each elytron and four small black spots on the pronotum. Both adults and larvae of this species start feeding by creating a trench around the leaf tissue that they intend to consume. The trench is thought to reduce the plants ability to excrete sap and chemicals that would hinder feeding. The adults consume all of the leaf tissue except for the small veins and create a skeletonized pattern in their feeding patch. Epilachna borealis,Geotagged,Squash Lady Beetle,Summer,United States,beetle

Behavior

The beetle lays a small egg on either the vine or the fruit. The larva burrows into the plant, allowing bacteria to enter and infecting the section of vine which then dies, or the fruit itself, which will usually rot. If detected in time, the larva can be removed from a pumpkin in time to save the fruit, by careful dissection and removal of the larva and its feces. The pumpkin will usually then heal over the wounds and survive.

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Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionArthropoda
ClassInsecta
OrderColeoptera
FamilyCoccinellidae
GenusEpilachna
SpeciesE. borealis
Photographed in
United States of America