How Bethpage State Park Aims to Better Understand Annual Bluegrass Weevil, a Common Turf Grass Pest
Over the years, the annual bluegrass weevil (Listronotus maculicollis) has become quite the nuisance for North American golf courses. At Bethpage State Park, our fair(way) share of this pest starts when the weather gets warmer and the rhododendrons begin to bloom. As the species name suggests, annual bluegrass weevils (ABW) are beetles that feed predominately on annual bluegrass (Poa annua), especially when mowed short. This obviously makes golf course habitats extremely suceptible to ABW activity. In early spring, adult ABW migrate from forest edges and roughs, into fairway collars and greens. There they will lay eggs in the sheaths of P. annua. Early larvae will feed on these stems until they become too big and shift to feed on the crown of the turfgrass. It is at this stage that ABW is believed to cause the most damage. With an overwintering population and multiple generations per year, it is no wonder that these little insects succeed at creating a great deal of troubl