The egg is oval or spherical with a bright, pearly white tint.
The larva is whitish, has no legs, and measures approximately 1/6 inch (4 mm) long. Just beneath the skull, the body is somewhat expanded.
The pupa is whitish with scant hairs and many thick tubercles. It measures around 1/6 inch (4 mm) in length.
The mature beetle measures around 1/12 inch (2 mm) in length. It features brownish-black legs and antennae and a small, stubby snout with biting mouthparts. The thorax is gleaming and lengthy. The wing coverings are dingy, and the interstices (the spaces between body pieces) are wrinkled.
Host plants:
Cherries, peaches, plums, apples, and pears are common hosts. They also breed in natural hosts such as wild plum, black cherry, and mountain ash.
Territory:
Shothole borers are little beetles brought from Europe and have now expanded over the majority of the United States and southern Canada.
Damage caused by Shothole Borer:
Adults bore tiny (1 mm) holes into the bark of fruit tree branches, particularly above a bud or other protrusion. Sawdust or borings in the bark might occasionally indicate a hole. The female builds an egg gallery about 2.5 cm long beneath the bark, parallel to the grain. The fruit clusters wilt when the insects are plentiful, and the surrounding leaves become brown.
Life history and Habits:
Shothole borers spend the winter as larvae in feeding tunnels beneath the bark of host trees. They pupate in the spring and emerge as adults in April or May. Following mating, the female beetle bores through the bark and builds an egg gallery parallel to the wood grain between the bark and the cambium layer. The larvae feed in tunnels under the bark for about a month. They emerge after pupating and maturing into adults by chewing little spherical holes through the bark. The common name comes from these little holes. The beetles begin laying eggs for the next generation soon after they emerge. Each year, there are possibly three or four generations.
