Bug FAQHairy Rose Beetle
Tropinota squalida · Order: Coleoptera · Family: Scarabaeidae
Source: Wikipedia
These beetles are 10 to 15 mm long, dark-brown with long tawny hairs and two rows of white spots on each wing cover. They live in France, Italy, Greece, Portugal, the former Yugoslavia, Spain, the Near East and North Africa, but not in the Americas. Adults feed on the flowers of fruit trees, apples, pears, cherries, quince, strawberries, roses and irises, destroying pistils, stamens and petals and stopping fruit production.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The head, scutellum and wing covers are dark brown, covered with long tawny hair, and the wing covers have two lines of white spots along the sides.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
They measure about 10 to 15 mm in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Is it a pest in the house?
They are regarded as an agricultural pest because they eat flower parts, preventing fruit development.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
You will find them mainly in southern Europe, the Near East and North Africa. They are absent from both North and South America.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Adults eat the flowers of many garden and orchard plants, such as fruit trees, apples, pears, cherries, quince, strawberries, roses and irises.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The larvae live in the soil and feed on plant roots, while the adults appear from May to July and feed on flowers.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are active during the months of May, June and July.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Their native range includes France, Italy, Greece, Portugal, the former Yugoslavia, Spain, the Near East and North Africa.
Source: Wikipedia
More photos
Questions people ask
What plants do Hairy Rose Beetles damage?
They feed on the flowers of fruit trees, apples, pears, cherries, quince, strawberries, roses and irises, destroying the reproductive parts and stopping fruit set.
Source: Wikipedia
When are adult Hairy Rose Beetles active?
Adults can be seen from May through July feeding on flowers.
Source: Wikipedia
Where are Hairy Rose Beetles found?
They occur in France, Italy, Greece, Portugal, the former Yugoslavia, Spain, the Near East and North Africa, but not in the Americas.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Scarabaeidae)
Japanese BeetlePopillia japonicaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Common Green June BeetleCotinis nitidaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Phyllophaga crinitaPhyllophaga crinitaDamages trees, gardens or crops
European Rose ChaferCetonia aurata
Mediterranean Spotted ChaferOxythyrea funestaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Oriental BeetleExomala orientalisDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropinota_squalida
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.