Spatial Distribution of Hunting Billbugs (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Sod Farms.

The hunting billbug, Chittenden (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is an important turfgrass pest, especially in sod farms. larvae feed on the stems and roots of turfgrass. Damaged turfgrass is loosely held together and poses a challenge for machine harvesting. Additionally, the normal growth of turfgrass is affected, especially after winter dormancy. Because larvae are hidden inside the stems or under the soil, larval management is challenging. To improve sampling and management, the spatial distribution patterns of larvae and adults were assessed at four sod farm sites with a history of infestation in central Georgia (USA). The larvae were sampled by soil cores using a hole cutter, whereas adults were collected using pitfall traps for 7 d. The spatial distributions of larvae and adults was analyzed using SADIE and variograms. The SADIE and variogram analyses revealed a significant aggregation pattern for adults, whereas aggregated distributions were detected for larvae with variogram analyses. The average ranges of spatial dependence for larval and adult samples were 3.9 m and 5.4 m, respectively. Interpolated distribution maps were created to visually depict infestation hotspots within the sod farms.