Large, clumsy, nocturnal beetles that blunder noisily into windows and lights on warm summer evenings — the adults are harmless leaf-grazers but the larvae (white C-shaped grubs) live in soil for 3–4 years eating plant roots, damaging lawns and crops; badgers and rooks dig up turf to find them.
May bugs
The cockchafer (Melolontha melolontha) is known colloquially as the “May bug” or “doodlebug” — adults emerge and fly in warm evenings from May onwards. Their flight is noisy and somewhat erratic; they buzz loudly and frequently crash into windows, walls, and light fixtures. Once abundant across Europe, populations crashed in the 20th century due to soil insecticides; since restrictions on these compounds, numbers have partially recovered.
Soil larvae
The larvae are white, C-shaped grubs that live in soil for 3–4 years, feeding on plant roots. They can cause serious damage to lawns, golf courses, and crops by severing roots. Their presence underground attracts predators: badgers will tear up sections of turf to reach them, and rooks and jackdaws follow the plough to eat larvae turned up by the blade.
Fan-shaped antennae
Chafers can be identified by their fan-shaped (lamellate) antennae — a series of flattened plates that can be spread and folded. In male cockchafers, these fans are large and ornate, with seven plates; females have only six. The antennae detect chemical signals and are used in finding mates.
Ecological role
Despite their pest reputation, chafer larvae are an important food source for many animals. Rooks, starlings, badgers, moles, and hedgehogs all eat the grubs, and the adults are taken by bats, owls, and kestrels on summer evenings.
Find more insects by letter
Chafer starts with C and ends with R. Browse other insects along the same letter.
Insects that contain a letter from "Chafer":