Expert Warns of New 'Leaf-Eating, Perennial Pest' in Chicago Area

There’s a new bug in town, and officials at the Chicago Botanic Garden are warning homeowners that it could be just as bad as the Japanese beetle.

Tom Tiddens, the supervisor of plant health for the Botanic Garden, has noticed the debut of viburnum leaf beetles at the garden Thursday. It prefers a particular plant—arrowwood viburnum—as its host. There it nestles in and nibbles on the leaves. Females then lay up to 500 eggs at one time, Tiddens said.

“If you live in the area, I suggest you monitor your viburnums for our new foreign friend,” Tiddens wrote on the garden’s website. “The sad thing about this critter is that once he moves in, he will become a perennial pest, just like Japanese beetles.”

The viburnum leaf beetle is native to Europe and was first found in the United States (in Maine) in 1994. It was first found in Illinois (Cook County) in 2009. In 2012 and 2013, the number of reports increased from Cook County and also from DuPage County. In late summer 2014, there were numerous reports from Cook County and some specifically from neighboring Winnetka, where complete defoliation was reported—only five miles from the Garden.

The beetle “seems to be on the verge of having a great impact in our area.”

“Nearly everyone’s home landscape has viburnum.”

Read more about the beetle and what homeowners can do to combat its invasion.