Chafer Beetle Exterminator in Vancouver
Managing the Most Invasive Pest in Greater Vancouver
Encourages Wildlife Damage
Raccoons, crows, & other wildlife will rip apart lawns to feed on chafer beetles
Dangerous for B.C property & Parks
Chafer beetles & their larvae feed on the roots of trees, grass & plants of 300+ species
The BC Ministry of Agriculture is leading emergency response for chafer beetles in your city, but it will not protect your property
The Ministry of Agriculture and Food and Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) are working cooperatively with the City of Vancouver, West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Richmond, Surrey, and Burnaby, to treat and control the population of chafer beetles in public land and parks.
Treatment on public lands will not protect your private property. Chafer beetles feed on the foliage and fruit of over 300 species and will destroy your gardens and landscape if left untreated.
What’s being done?
Here’s what your city is doing about chafer beetles
1. Surveillance
A surveillance program has been imposed by the CFIA around infested & non-infested areas across Southern B.C. These traps contain attractants that lure chafer beetles. Trapping helps monitor the activity of chafer beetles and their spread over-time.
2. Regulated Areas
The CFIA has imposed regulations that prohibit the movement of rooted plants and soil out of regulated areas. This may help to reduce the transfer of chafer beetles to new regions in Southern B.C., providing critical invasion maintenance and prevention.
3. Acelepryn Treatment
Acelepryn is a larvicide being used for chafer beetle treatment in B.C. The larvicide targets chafer beetles and will not impact people, pets, mammals, birds, bees, butterflies or other animals. The application is treated on turf, lawns, fields and public areas.
Public Park Treatments
Acelepryn treatments are localized and can only help to control population within the area of application. Treatments to public parks will help to control wide-spread outbreaks but will not control chafer beetles and grubs on your property. To the right is a map of Vancouver parks that will be treated for chafer beetles. Private property outside of these marked areas will not directly benefit from Acelepryn treatments.
How to tell if you have an infestation?
Early signs of activity can help to prevent wildlife damage
Grubs, chafer beetle larvae, feed on nutrients from grass roots. An increase in grub population is noticeable by grass root disease; a discoloration in the color of your grass, which is often a brown or yellow. As the population of grubs gets larger, the likelihood of wildlife damage increases.
1. Discoloration
Grubs feed on grass roots and can be found inches from the surface. As grub activity starts in the spring, individual grass blades will appear yellow & brownish. This is the first sign root disease.
2. Yellow Patches
Individual grass blade damage eventually turns into yellow patches. In warmer summer months as the lawn gets drier, grub activity is noticeable by patchy yellow discoloration.
3. Lawn Damage
The small yellow patches soon develop into larger dead patches of grass, as grubs feed on all the available nutrients in the roots. These dead patches grow quickly in diameter and can span entire yards.
4. Peel-Back Test
On the edges of the most damaged parts of the lawn, peel back a 30cm x 30cm zone of grass right down to the roots. This may need to be done in a few areas to verify chafer beetle grubs are at fault.
Preventing Wildlife Damage
Animals forage for food, and grubs are a tasty treat. Local wildlife such as raccoons, birds & skunks will rip apart lawns where there are signs of chafer beetle and grub activity. Once the wildlife damage is done, there’s no way to reactively treat for chafer beetles and get rid of them in the same season. Acelepryn, the product used by the B.C. government, takes time to do its magic – treatment is applied to prevent against issues for the next season (3-6 months).
About Chafer Beetles
Understanding chafers will help you in dealing with them
Chafer beetles in greater Vancouver can cause substantial damage to your lawn turf. The grubs feed on the roots of different kinds of plants. This causes destruction of lawns and plants. Their life cycle is only one year long, which means that their population rapidly increases. Adult Chafer Beetles are tan or brown, measuring approximately 1.5 cm (0.5 inches) long. The larvae (or grubs) have brown heads and white, C-shaped bodies, and they’re smaller than a dime.
Life Cycle
January – April
During late winter and early spring, the grubs move closer to the roots and continues to grow. They continue to feed until they pupate, this is a transition to become adult beetles in May.
May – June
Adult beetles emerge from the soil and fly to nearby trees to mate and feed. Once mated, females deposit eggs (up to 50 eggs per female) in the soil. During this time, beetles cause minimal damage to turf.
July – September
Between July to September, eggs start to hatch and the grubs (larvae) begin to feed on the roots of grass and plants. Damages to lawns can be seen with dying, patches of brown grass and soil.
October – December
Grub continues to eat roots to grow. Transitioning from fall to winter, the grubs move deeper into the soil. They are 2-3 feet below the surface and return to their protective cell due to colder temperatures.
Our Chafer Beetle Control Process
Our certified pest specialists are chafer beetle & grub experts
Step 1: Identify Area & Quote
We first need to determine the severity of damage done by chafer beetles on your property. Our customer service team will help to map out the size of your affected area and provide a custom treatment plan for your yard.
Step 2: Acelepryn Application
Acelepryn is sprayed onto your affected yards, absorbed into the roots of your grass, and causes paralysis in grubs that chew at these roots. Spray applications are performed to prevent against grub activity in the next hatching season.
Step 3: Regular Maintenance
24-hours after treatment by our technicians, heavily water the treated areas as this will help to flush the Acelepryn deeper into the roots of your grass. Continue to monitor and control your lawn with proper care. Acelepryn applications are recommended on a yearly basis, performed in the spring, to keep a healthy lawn in an infested region.