Bringing information and education into

the communities of the Granite State

Beneficial Insects in New

Hampshire Farms & Gardens 
Dr. Alan T. Eaton, Extension Specialist, Entomology

Although there are plenty of references on insect pests, there are

relatively few references that feature beneficial insects. I wrote this
publication to illustrate and describe some of the common New
Hampshire beneficial insects that might be found in your yard, gar-
den, or farm. I’ll concentrate on predaceous insects, parasites, and Beneficial insects are all around us. By
pollinators. I will not cover insects that are beneficial in other ways, reading the descriptions and looking at
such as breaking down leaf litter, feeding on carrion, or serving as the photographs, you can spot them in
an important food sources for birds, bats, fish, and other animals. your yard.
I won’t include beneficial species that are mostly encountered if
you purchased them for release in greenhouses or other situations.
You can find photos of them in catalogs and greenhouse referenc-
es. I will not include species that are strictly aquatic. Since people
learn from photographs, I’ve included as many photos as I could,
to help you recognize beneficial insects by sight. I’ve listed size
in millimeters, because it is more accurate than inches. There are
25.4 mm to the inch, so 1 mm is pretty small. Rather than organize
the information taxonomically (by insect orders, then families in
each order), I have arranged them by “profession”, starting with
parasitic insects, then predators, then pollinators. At the end, I’ve
described how to preserve and encourage beneficial insects on your
farm or in your garden.

Insect Parasites
An observant person can find insects that have been attacked by
parasites. Adult female parasites are the ones that do the attacking
(laying eggs). Parasites usually attack multiple individual hosts, usu-
ally by laying their eggs on or in the body of the host insect. Many
parasites have a very narrow host range; they’ll attack just one or a
few species. Some parasites attack a wide range of species.

Tachinid flies (pronounced ta-kin-id, family Tachinidae) lay their Photo 1. A tachinid fly that attacks squash bug.
oval, whitish eggs on the surface of their prey. This means the eggs
are easily visible. When the egg hatches, the parasite larva bur-
rows directly into the body of the host and starts feeding, leaving
the empty egg shell attached to the surface. Once fully grown, the
maggot emerges from the now dead
host, and pupates. Eventually the
adult fly emerges from the pupa,
and the cycle begins again. Tachi-
nids commonly attack caterpillars
or sawflies, and a few species attack
true bugs (stinkbugs for example) or
beetles. The red, gold and black fly
on page 1 is a tachinid that attacks
squash bug and stinkbugs. Some
attacked insects have several eggs
on their bodies, showing that they Photo 2. Cutworm with tachinid eggs.

Photo 3. A very large tachinid fly. Photo 4. Aphid mummy.

were attacked multiple times, like the cutworm in

photo 2. If you look closely at Japanese beetles in early
July, you can find tachinid eggs on some. On this host
species, the eggs are most common on the thorax, the
shiny green section behind the head. Those beetles
with tachinid eggs on them are doomed. The fly that
parasitizes Japanese beetle was introduced from Korea
many years ago, in an effort to control the pest. It kills
some, but doesn’t seem to lower Japanese beetle num-
bers very much. Most tachinid flies look a lot like house
flies. The only way to identify the adult flies for certain
is to use a microscope and a technical key. There are at
least 276 species of Tachinids in New Hampshire. They
are highly variable. Some species are long and narrow,
while others are stout, like a house fly. Most are gray Photo 5. A braconid wasp.
or black, but a few have some bright colors. They are as
large as 16mm (2/3 inch).
Aphids that have been attacked and killed by parasites typically turn tan and rigid, and are called mummies.
Sometimes mummies have a large circular hole in the body. That shows that the parasite (usually a tiny wasp)
has already emerged to attack other aphids. Most of the parasites that attack aphids here are very tiny braco-
nid wasps. If you find an aphid mummy with a ragged hole in it, that is probably evidence of a hyperparasite.
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A hyperparasite parasitizes (kills) parasites, so is detri-
mental to the parasite population. Braconid wasps lay
their eggs inside the hosts they attack, so there is no
egg shell sitting on the host insect, to give a clue that it
has been attacked.

If you examine insect eggs enough, eventually you’ll

find one or more that has a tiny hole in the top or side
--- too small for the hatching larva to have left. These
have been parasitized by tiny Chalcid [kal-sid] or Tri-
chogramma [trick-o-gramma] wasps. You really need
good magnification (usually a microscope) to find
these holes. Some of these adult wasps are only a milli-
meter long. They have elbowed antennae, and very few
Photo 6. Chalcid wasp.
wing veins. Photo 6 shows one examining caterpillar
eggs in my garden.

Photo 7. Hornworm with wasp cocoons. Photo 8. Braconid cocoons on cabbage leaves.

In some species of parasites, when the parasite larva

is fully grown, it emerges from the body of the host it
attacked, and spins a cocoon on the outside of the host.
The parasite then transforms into an adult inside that
cocoon. The most common garden examples are tiny
white cocoons on the backs of hornworm caterpillars or
the single white cocoons on cabbage leaves (the para-
site killed imported cabbageworms). In these cases, the
parasites are tiny braconid wasps. Some braconids are
polyembryonic. That means that many wasp larvae de-
velop from just one parasite egg laid in the host (photo
9). Adults of most braconids are relatively small, 7-9
mm or so (roughly 3/8 inch). They have relatively long,
curved antennae. Braconids are common here. We have Photo 9. Caterpillar, with dozens of parasitic wasp larvae inside.
at least 140 species of them in New Hampshire.

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Other common insect parasites
include wasps in the families Ichneu-
monidae, [ik-new-mon-id-ay] Chal-
cidae, and Trichogrammatidae. Ich-
neumonds (photos 10 & 11) include
some large species. Two of them are
particularly impressive, with bodies
up to 1.5 inches long, and ovipositors
(egg-layer) up to 3 inches long. They
are adapted to attack the larvae of
horntails boring in wood. They use
the long ovipositor to bore precisely
through the wood, find and pierce the
body of a borer an inch or two inside
the wood! Occasionally you will find
where a bird or other predator in- Photo 10. Ichneumond wasp.
terrupted the egg-laying and ate the
wasp, leaving the ovipositor stuck in
the tree. Ichneumonds are recogniz-
able by a meat-cleaver-shaped cell in
the forewing. In photo 11 that cell is
just below the thickened spot along
the leading edge of the forewing. We
have over 300 species of ichneumonds
in New Hampshire.

Big-headed flies (family Pipunculidae)

are not very abundant, but are very
odd-looking. They are small flies, with
heads almost entirely covered by their
huge eyes (photo 12). They are para-
sites of leafhoppers and planthoppers.
These specimens I captured in a net
trap in August of 1997.

There is one relatively common para- Photo 11. Ichneumond wasp.

site of white grubs in New Hampshire.
It is a black wasp with a very long
abdomen (photo 13). You may see it in
late August or September. The abdo-
men is so long, it doesn’t fly very well.
With the long abdomen, it can reach
into the soil where white grubs live, to
lay its eggs. It is in the family Pelecini-
dae [pel-a-sin-i-dee]. There are many
more species of parasites, in other
families.

Photo 12. Big-headed flies.

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Before leaving the subject of para-
sitism, I’ll contrast two terms used
by entomologists. The term “par-
asitoid” is used to mean what I’ve
here called a parasite. A parasitoid
is a macro-organism (meaning not
microscopic, like a bacterium) that
lives by attacking another organism,
and consuming it. It kills the host it
attacks, and as it grows, it kills only
one individual host. Usually a para-
sitoid and its host are taxonomically
close (both being insects for exam-
ple). So the families of “parasites”
I’ve discussed in this publication Photo 13. Pelecinid wasp.
are actually parasitoids.

Most entomologists use the word “parasite” to mean a macro-or-

ganism that lives at the expense of another organism. Usually
parasites do not kill their hosts, and one host can support many
(sometimes thousands) of parasites. Often the host and parasite are
taxonomically far apart, like ticks feeding on a moose. Occasionally,
an observant person will notice insects that have parasites on them.
One example is in photo 14. The tiny orange dots on this firefly
larva are mites. Other examples of true parasites are tracheal mites
and varroa mites on/in honeybees, and intestinal worms in many
animals.

Predators
Predaceous insects use various methods to find their prey. In some
cases, the adults locate prey by smell, and lay their eggs close to
prey colonies, so their larvae will have a good food supply. Lace-
wings, syrphid flies, and cecidomyid flies are examples of these. If
Photo 14. Firefly larva with parasitic mites.

you find a tiny orange maggot among

a group of aphids, it is the larva of
a cecidomyid fly. Most cecidomyids
are actually plant feeders, but the
aphid predator Aphidoletes aphidimy-
za (photo 15) is very common. The
orange color of the larva proves that
it is this species. Adults are very tiny
(1mm long) delicate flies. You are not
very likely to spot one, because they
sit in cover during the day, and fly on
calm nights. Photo 16 on the next
page shows a pinned adult.

Photo 15. Larva of a cecidomyid fly.

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A bright yellow maggot among a group of
aphids could be a less common aphid predator,
a Chamaemyiid [kam-ee-my-ee-id] fly. Syrphid
larvae could be among aphids. Usually syrphid
larvae (photo 17) have mottled colors, never all
orange. Since I’ve described the larvae, I should
mention eggs. The eggs of Syrphid flies are
found next to aphid colonies on plants (photo
18). They are oval, cream colored eggs. If you
find one, look at it with a magnifying glass, and
you’ll probably see a distinctive bumpy surface.
Cecidomyid eggs are also among aphids, but are
elongate, minute, and orange.
Photo 16. Adult Aphidaletes aphidimzea.

Photo 17. Syrphid larva with aphid prey. Photo 18. Syrphid egg.

The adults of all of these flies I just mentioned are not predaceous…just the larvae. Syrphid adults are quite
common on flowers. They have a distinctive spurious vein in the wing: one that fades out at both ends. It is
located between the radius & medius veins (photo 19). Not all of the syrphids are predators.

Photo 19. Wing of Syrphid fly.

Photo 20. Syrphid fly. Photo 21. Lacewing.

The eggs of green lacewings are so distinctive, that you can identify them on sight (photo 24). Each whitish,
oval egg is laid at the tip of a long, slender stalk. Usually the adult lays them singly or in small groups, close to
a group of aphids. The adults locate aphid colonies by smell. Green lacewing larvae (photo 23) are elongated,
with long curved jaws. The adults (photo 21) are small, delicate light green insects. Their wings have so many
tiny veins that they resemble lace.

Photo 22. Lacewing eggs. Photo 23. Lacewing larva.

Many ladybugs (they’re actually beetles) are aphid predators, both in the adult and larval stages. Ladybug
larvae are elongated, often reminding people of tiny six-legged alligators (photo 23). Some ladybugs feed on
a wide range of prey, including tiny caterpillars, insect eggs, and other soft-bodied insects. We have over 60
species of ladybugs in New Hampshire. One of them (Mexican bean beetle) is a plant feeder, but the rest are
predators. The smallest species are only 1mm long, but the largest are about 12mm long. Our most common
ladybug now is multi-colored Asian ladybug (photo 25). It eats a wide variety of prey. It shows a wide range
of colors and patterns. Some adults of this species have no spots at all, while others have as many as 20. Our
next most common species is spotted ladybug, a native species which is bright pink, with black spots. It has a

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Photo 24. Ladybug larva. Photo 25. A multi-colored Asian ladybug.

Photo 26. Spotted Ladybug. Photo 27. 14-spotted ladybug.

more oval shape than most of our other ladybugs. Propylea quatuordecimpunctata is sometimes called the
14-spotted ladybug. This species is a “tiny dude” (3-4mm) but it is easy to find in alfalfa and clover fields.

Some predators lay traps and wait for insects to come by. The larvae of ant lions are one example. They wait at the
bottom of a tiny pit of dry sand or soil, and are common in dry spots, where buildings prevent rainfall from reach-
ing the soil (photo 28). The larva is grayish, and completely buried, except for its jaws. When an ant or other small
insect falls into the pit, the ant lion grabs it and sucks out its body fluids. Adult ant lions (photo 29) look some-
what like dragonflies, but unlike them, have large, obvious antennae. They are much slower fliers than dragonflies,
and this is another clue to their identity. The fine lace-like veins in their wings are similar to their close relatives,
lacewings.

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Photo 28. Ant lion trap.

Ambush hunters
Some predators wait in spots where insects are likely
to come by. The larvae of tiger beetles wait in their
burrows for an insect to walk close by. When prey does
come near, the predator grabs it and pulls it into the
burrow to eat. Have you heard the kid’s song doodle-
bug? The name refers to larvae of tiger beetles. Am-
bush bugs (family Phymatidae) are especially common
on flowers in mid and late summer (photo 30). They
wait there for insects to visit, grab them, and suck out
their body fluids.
Photo 29. Adult ant lion.

Active Searchers
Some predators actively search for prey visually, like
preying mantids. Mantids do some walking, and
a lot of waiting. They are distinctive insects, easy
to identify, even when small. Motion triggers their
attention, so they usually feed on insects that move,
including other mantids. Our one species of man-
tid in New Hampshire is usually green (photo 31).
The young nymphs are very pale, and occur in late
spring and early summer. Both immature and adult
mantids are predaceous. Adults are found in August
and September. The females lay eggs in the fall, in
masses of foam that turns hard and light brown.
You may find them on buildings or low vegetation.
If you find one, and want to have the young emerge
in your garden, do not store it indoors! The warmth
will cause the eggs to hatch much earlier than they
Photo 30. Ambush bug. are supposed to, dooming the young to starvation.

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Photo 31. Praying mantid. Photo 32. Praying mantid egg mass.

Store it outside, in the garden.

Mantispids (also called mantis flies) look similar to mantids, but are smaller. We have two species of mantis-
pids here. The more common one is dark brown, and about one inch long (photo 33). It is an active predator,
like mantids. It somewhat resembles a brown paper wasp, so it might gain some protection from being eaten
by birds or other predators. Mantispids are not very common. They are closely related to lacewings and ant
lions. Mantids are closely related to crickets & grasshoppers.

Adult tiger beetles (photos 34 & 35) also hunt visually, and are very active. Pick one up the wrong way, and
you’ll find out why they are called tiger beetles. They are common on sunny, relatively bare soil, and many
have bright metallic green or blue colors. If you catch one, a magnifying glass could help you see the impres-
sive jaws. Many species respond to your approach by flying away, then landing a short distance away and
turning to face you.

Photo 33. A mantispid. Photo 34. Tiger beetle.

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Many Carabids (ground beetles) are active hunters, both as larvae and as adults. They are usually black, and
most of them are predators both as larvae and as adults. A few have metallic colors on part of the body, espe-
cially the group called “caterpillar hunters”. One caterpillar hunter (Carabus auratus L.) was imported from
Europe, to help control gypsy moth. Some “caterpillar hunters” have metallic coloring. Some of those climb
trees, but most ground beetles are active on or near the ground. Ground beetle larvae are also active preda-
tors, but bear little resemblance to the adults. The one in photo 38 was in my garden. The ground beetle family
is huge, with over 400 species in New Hampshire. The adults range in size from about 2mm to 25mm long.

Photo 35. A tiger beetle.

Photo 36. Ground beetle.

Photo 37. Caterpillar hunter. Photo 38. Ground beetle larva.

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Rove beetles (family Staphylinidae [staf-i-lin-id-ee]) are very long and thin. Most beetles have wing covers
that cover most or all of the abdomen. Rove beetles have wing covers that are very short, and their wings are
completely folded up underneath them. With such short wing covers, their segmented abdomens are fully ex-
posed to view. Most rove beetles are black, and fairly small. This species is one of the largest – almost an inch
long. When captured, the two specimens in photo 39 were attacking fly pupae at a dairy farm. We have over
200 species of rove beetles in New Hampshire.

Photo 39. Rove beetle. Photo 41. Soldier beetle.

Soldier beetles (family Cantharidae), photo 41, are relatively soft-bodied, elongate beetles, often with black
and yellow markings. They are often found on flowers, since the adults feed on pollen. Their larvae are general
predators of soft-bodied insects, like aphids or young caterpillars. Our common soldier beetles are 8-12mm
long. The larvae are elongated and often look velvety under a hand lens.

Fireflies are actually beetles, and they are easy to

see on a July night. Some species are predaceous as
adults, eating other fireflies. The timing and pat-
tern of their flashing are signals intended to attract
a mate of their particular species. The predaceous
species mimic the flashes of other species, luring
them close, so they can be eaten. If you see a firefly
during the daytime, you can confirm its identity by
looking at the last few segments of the abdomen,
from the underside. They should be whitish. New
Hampshire fireflies range from 5 to 14mm long.
Larval fireflies are somewhat flattened, and obvious-
ly segmented.

Checkered beetles (family Cleridae) are common

on and under bark and logs. Most are predators,
both as larvae and as adults. Many have somewhat
checkered markings. They range from 3 to 10 mm
long, and some have bright colors.
Photo 40. Firefly.

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True Bugs that are Active Searchers
True bugs (order Hemiptera) have pierc-
ing-sucking mouthparts rather than
chewing mandibles. Assassin bugs (family
Reduviidae) wander in vegetation, and
attack prey that comes close by. They can’t
successfully attack tough-shelled things
(most beetles for example) but otherwise
consume a wide variety of prey. We have
eleven species of them in the state, and
they have a variety of shapes and colors,
from gray to brown, green and yellow &
black. With such a range of shapes, it is
difficult to give a combination of charac-
ters that identify this family. I’ll try: they
have piercing-sucking mouthparts. Their
front legs are often adapted to grab prey, Photo 42. Assassin bug.
not just for walking. Entomologists look at
the underside of the thorax (“chest”), to see
if there is a groove into which the mouthparts fit, when at rest. If so, it is an assassin bug. You’ll need magni-
fication to see this groove. Some of these might bite if you try to handle them. One especially colorful one is
Pselliopus cincta.

Photo 43. Assassin bug.

Photo 45. Assassin bug.

Most stinkbugs are plant feeders, but we have

at least three common species of stinkbugs
that are predators. The spined soldier bug
is the most common of these, and it usually
feeds on soft-bodied insects like caterpillars,
sawflies, and larvae of Colorado potato beetle
and Mexican bean beetle. The nymphs have
Photo 44. Pselliopus cincta, an assassin bug.
a different, more colorful pattern than the

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Photo 46. Adult spined soldier bug. Photo 47. Nymph of spined soldier bug.

Photo 48. Spined soldier bug eggs. Photo 49. Anchor bug.

adults. Adults of spined soldier bug are recognized by the spines on either side of the thorax, the faint light
line down the center of the back, and the black lengthwise line in the clear wing tips (photo 46). Stinkbugs
lay eggs shaped like barrels, laid in groups. Spined soldier bug eggs are distinctive with a row of long spines
encircling the top, and a slightly metallic sheen.

The “Anchor bug” is a less common predaceous stinkbug with an anchor pattern on its back. Most individuals
here are black & tan, while a few are black and pink. In photo 49, the anchor is tan with a very slight pinkish
hue. Perillus bioculatus (F.) (photo 50) doesn’t have a common name. It is a black and orange-red predaceous
stinkbug, and it feeds (among other things) on Colorado potato beetle larvae.

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Minute pirate bug is a species in the family Anthoco-
ridae. The name fits; it is about 1 mm long. It attacks
small soft-bodied insects and insect eggs. The one on
my fingertip in photo 51 was in a greenhouse, but it
could be found in your garden, lawn, corn field, or
alfalfa.

Photo 51. Minute pirate bug.

New Hampshire alfalfa and clover fields are also a

likely spot to find Nabids (damsel bugs). They have a
somewhat oval shape, with slightly swollen front legs
(used for catching prey).

Photo 50. Perillus bioculatus (F.)

Photo 53. Robber fly.

Some active-searching predaceous flies are predators in

the adult stage, not as larvae. They include robber flies,
which are very hairy, and have large eyes. Many robber
flies have a stabbing hair at the tip of each leg, but you’d
need a microscope to see that. The flies sit on perch-
es and wait for prey (usually flying insects) to pass
close by. Then they pounce on them, and eat
them (photo 53 & 54).
Photo 52. Nabid.

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Photo 54. Robber fly. Photo 55. Long-legged fly.

Dolichopodids [doll-ik-o-po-dids] are tiny, metallic colored flies that are very active predators while they are
adults. They prey on insects that are smaller than themselves. The common name for the family is long-legged
flies.

Photo 56. A digger wasp. Photo 57. Provisioning wasp.

Many wasps, ants and hornets are valuable insect

predators. Some actively search for prey, and bring it
back to their burrows. Digger wasps and sand wasps
are examples. Some species specialize in certain types
of prey --- stinkbugs, flies, leafhoppers, or small
caterpillars (photo 57). Others take a range of insects
as prey. In some species, the female may have diffi-
culty flying with heavy prey, and sometimes resorts
to dragging the prey to the burrow. Mud-daubers and
potter wasps create nests of clay or mud, which they
stuff with prey. They lay an egg on the prey and seal
the chamber. The wasp larva hatches from the egg,
Photo 58. A potter wasp and nests.
eats the prey, transforms into a pupa, and then an
adult wasp, and emerges from the nest (usually next
year). Potter wasps usually make round mud pots,

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Photo 59. Mud-dauber nest. Photo 60. Common brown paper wasp.

while mud daubers make elongated

mud tubes for nests. Both types usu-
ally select nest spots out of reach of
rain, like under eaves of buildings.

Our vespid wasps are valuable cat-

erpillar and sawfly predators. They
include the brown paper wasps, bald
faced hornet, yellow jackets and gi-
ant European hornet. The common
brown paper wasps are the least
aggressive of these, with respect to
stinging people. They place their
open paper nests under eaves and
in other protected locations. Bald-
faced hornets are common here.
They aggressively attack people who
threaten them or their nests. Their
paper nests are usually pear-shaped,
with paper combs hidden inside. If Photo 61. Bald faced hornet.
they nest out of the way of my activi-
ty, I leave them alone, so they’ll hunt
caterpillars in my yard.

The larvae of most of our butterflies and moths (caterpillars) feed on plants. But we have one species that has
a surprise: the larvae of the “harvester” butterfly feed on aphids! They are not very common. The caterpillars
are easiest to find on alders that have lots of woolly aphids on them.

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 One common insect group com-
posed entirely of predators is the
dragonflies. Both the adults and
the immatures are predators. The
immature stages live in water;
some in fast flowing streams &
rivers, others in ponds, pools
and marshes. We have over 100
species of them in New Hamp-
shire, and some of the adults
have beautiful colors. Dragonflies
have excellent vision, and most
are quick-reacting, fast fliers, so
they catch prey on the wing. All
are daytime hunters, although
Photo 62. Harvester butterfly. several species are crepuscular
--- active at twilight. One of the
largest species (dragonhunter)
largely feeds on other dragon-
flies. People who collect and pin
a beautifully colored dragonfly
for the first time soon have a dis-
appointment: the beautiful colors
quickly fade, and the insect turns
grayish-brown. If you want to
preserve the beautiful greens,
yellows, reds and blues, do it by
taking a photo.

Immature stages of dragonflies

have an unusual adaptation for
predation, the “labial mask”. This
Photo 63. This dragonfly is named black spinyleg. is the lower section of mouth-
parts that can suddenly be thrust
forward and grab prey that is
close by. In this photo, the mask
is the elongated structure on the
head. The immatures wait for
prey to come close enough to get
caught, or walk slowly to within
range. In some dragonfly fam-
ilies (darners for example), the
immatures are elongate. In one
family (cruisers), the immatures
are broad, very flat, and have
very long legs, reminding some
people of spiders.

Photo 64. Immature dragonfly.

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Pollinators
The honey bee is a European
species that is our most important
and best known pollinator. There
are about 200 species of native bees
in New Hampshire that pollinate
too. Most of them are smaller
than honey bee, and very few have
common names. The squash bee
is one that does have a common
name. It specializes in pollinating
flowers in the squash family. Note
that it has very long antennae, and
is darker color than honeybee.
Some Megachilid bees carry pollen
Photo 65. A native bee in the family Andrenidae.

Photo 67. Megachilid bee.

Photo 66. Squash bee.

Photo 68. Halictid bee. Photo 69. Halictid bee.

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 on their bellies, making them easy
to identify when they are gathering
pollen. That family is called leaf
cutter bees, because many species
line their nest cells with pieces they
cut from leaves. Bees in the family
Halictidae are usually small, often
with beautiful metalic green colors.
Some small halictids are attracted
to sweat, so the family is called
sweat bees.

Most of the native bees are solitary.

That means each female bee makes
her own home, for herself and her
young. Frequently she stores pollen
for the larvae to eat. Many make
burrows in bare soil (like species
Photo 70. A parasitic bee in the genus Nomada. in the families Colletidae and
Andrenidae. Others (Megachilids,
some Anthophorids & Colletids) make or use holes they find in wood or plant stems. All bees have hairs that
are branched. You need a microscope to see this adaptation, which makes them efficient pollen collectors. At
least two of our species of bumble bees that were formerly abundant in this state have almost disappeared:
Bombus terriciola and Bombus affinis. A protozoan pathogen from Europe might be responsible.

A few of our bee species are relatively poor pollinators (few body hairs) and make their living as freeloaders
in the nests of other bees. The example in the photo above is in the genus Nomada, and is recognizable by the
small size and bright color.

Although bees are the best of our pollinators, some wasps, flies, beetles, butterflies, skippers and moths help
in some flower pollination. In some areas where bees are few (the cold alpine gardens on Mt. Washington, for
example) these serve as the main insect pollinators.

Other Natural Enemies of New Hampshire Insects

There are many other insect relatives that prey on insects, including spiders, centipedes, predaceous mites,
pseudoscorpions, and more, but I won’t cover them here. There are also insect attacking nematodes, bacteria,
fungi, protozoans and viruses. Then, of course, there are birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and fish that
eat insects.

Preserving, Protecting and Encouraging Beneficial Insects

Consider your use of pesticides:

One of the most effective steps to protect beneficial insects is to minimize your use of chemical insecticides.
Remember that most insecticides are like double-edged swords… they can kill pests, but can kill beneficial
insects as well. In general, the ones that are most detrimental to beneficial insects are the broad-spectrum
insecticides that have long residual action. “Broad-spectrum” means that they kill a very wide range of insect
species. You can get an idea of this by reading the pesticide label. “Long residual” materials means the residue
still kills insects that walk over the sprayed surface for many days after it is sprayed. Synthetic pyrethroids

UNH Cooperative Extension • 20

 (Asana, Baythroid, Warrior, per-
methrin) are good examples that
are both broad-spectrum and long
residual materials.

Research on beneficial orchard

mites (predators) in Quebec
demonstrated that some pyrethroids
were still killing predator mites
that walked over the treated foliage
six weeks after a single treatment!
Carbamates (Sevin, Lannate, Vydate
etc.) and organo-phosphates (such
as Guthion, Imidan, Diazinon,
Malathion) are also broad-spectrum
insecticides, but many have shorter
residual action than most synthetic
pyrethroids. Some plant-derived
Photo 71. Branched bee hairs. Photo by Cheryl Smith. insecticides (Neem and Pyganic for
example) are broad spectrum mate-
rials, but have very short residual action. These products are often sold in greatly diluted form, so they may be
detrimental to beneficial insects for a relatively short period of time --- hours to perhaps a day.

Some modern insecticides are very narrow-spectrum materials, and are not likely to harm many beneficials.
Examples include Bacillus thuringiensis - based insecticides, like Dipel, Biobit and Xentari. Another type of
insecticide is the soil-applied, systemic, soil-applied material. These are absorbed by the plant’s roots, and get
incorporated into the plant tissues. These can harm insects that feed on the plant, but not those that simply
walk on the leaves. Therefor these can be harmless to many beneficial insects. Systemic insecticides, however,
can be harmful to soil-dwelling beneficial insects, like ground and rove beetles. Systemic insecticides are rare-
ly legal to use on food crops, due to concerns that they might end up inside the plants or fruits we eat.

Pesticide risk to bees is an important consideration in any insecticide program and is affected by formula-
tion. Bees have many tiny, branched hairs on their bodies, to help collect pollen. Pesticides that are in dust
or wettable powder form are often in a particle size comparable to pollen grains, so are easily picked up (by
electrostatic attraction) by bee hairs. For managing risk to bees, dusts are the most problematic, followed by
wettable powders and flowable formulations. Emulsifiable concentrate formulations generally pose the lowest
risk to bees.

There are concerns that some newer insecticides may concentrate in pollen or nectar of flowers, and thus be
harmful to bees (they eat both). In summary: keep in mind the impact to pollinators and other beneficial
organisms in your insecticide program, and use insecticides only if you really need them. Try to favor the
narrower-spectrum, shorter-residual products if you do need to treat a crop. Some of the neonicitinoid insec-
ticides (imidacloprid, thiamethoxam, clothianidin for example) may pose significant risks to bees, depending
on how they are used.

Think about the value of plant diversity

We see higher numbers of beneficial insects in habitats that have many plant species, compared to those with
few plant species. When I studied beneficial insects in soybean fields, I found that insect predators were most
common along the edges bordered by woods, shrubs, or fallow fields. We see this pattern in other crops too.

UNH Cooperative Extension • 21

 You can put this information to use on
your farm by de-emphasizing large blocks
of the same crop, by strip cropping, com-
panion-planting or interplanting. To a de-
gree, cover-cropping helps as well. Many of
the photos in this publication I took at the
edges of fields, or in strip-cropped sites.

High diversity in flowering plants can en-

sure availability of pollen and nectar. This
is important to many beneficial insects.
Nectar is especially important to many
tiny parasites, like the trichogramma,
chalcid and braconid wasps. The smallest
ones can’t travel very far without nectar to
eat, so maintaining nectar sources on the
farm is important to help them. Our bees
vary greatly in the length of their tongues.
Those with short tongues can’t reach the
nectar in deep flowers (like red clover),
Photo 72. This colletid bee is guarding her nest. so having a variety of flowering species is
especially helpful to benefit a wide range of
bee species. Think of spatial distribution as well as time of year in providing nectar sources. The ideal site has
nectar sources throughout the farm, with something in bloom at all times during the growing season.

Provide cover for beneficial insects:

Many insects require nesting and protective resting sites. Providing this will encourage predators, parasites
and pollinators. Many of our native bees require undisturbed nesting sites. Most of them are solitary nesters.
Some construct a nest burrow in twigs, the pith of stems or decaying wood. Others (like the colletid bee in the
photo above) nest in the ground, so they need relatively bare soil that is not plowed regularly.

Purchasing beneficial insects:

I am regularly asked about buying predators or parasites and releasing them in the garden, to control insects
or establish new populations. Generally, I don’t recommend this outdoors (there are a couple of exceptions)
because most of the released organisms disperse, rather than stay. Some, like most commercial ladybugs, are
collected in the wild in winter. When removed from cold storage and released, their natural behavior is to
fly away. This makes it hard to keep them in your garden. Also, many predators are general feeders, rather
than specialists that concentrate on pest species. My suggestion is to think of predators as tools that assist in
keeping pest numbers down, rather than controls. Parasites, on the other hand, are more species-specific, and
might have a greater effect on pest populations.

Gardening with beneficial insects can be fun. In addition to the end goal of reducing pest populations by en-
couraging the healthy beneficial insect populations, there are additional benefits. One is a more judicious use
of targeted insecticides. Another is creating a garden area with a complex structure and season-long flowering
plants, both of which can be aesthetically pleasing. A third is that you may begin to recognize the beneficial
species and distinguish them from pests. This can lead to greater enjoyment of insects in your garden. It is
interesting to watch them and appreciate their diversity. Good luck to you in the next growing season!

UNH Cooperative Extension • 22

For Further Reading

Pollinator Conservation Handbook. Matthew Shepard, Stephen Buchmann, Mace Vaughn and Scott
Hoffman Black. 2003. The Xerces Society. ISBN 0-9744475-0-1

Bee Nest Box Guidelines. 2016. Amy Papineau, UNH Extension. https://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/
Resource005503_Rep7670.pdf

Flowering Calendar for Wildflower Species in Southern New Hampshire. 2015. Dr. Cathy Neal, UNH
Extension. https://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource005602_Rep7825.pdf

Native Wildflowers for New England Meadows. 2014. Dr Cathy Neal and Amy Papineau, UNH Extension
https://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource004206_Rep6043.pdf

Photographs
Unless otherwise indicated, all photos were taken by Alan Eaton. Many were taken with a digital camera, but
a few are old slides that were recently scanned into digital format. The older technology (film) images tend
to be less sharp, and the scanning process can result in additional loss of resolution. Cheryl Smith took the
microscope photo of branched bee hairs.
Acknowledgements
Thank you to Piera Siegert and Peg Boyles for editing the manuscript and making helpful suggestions. Thank
you to Suzanne Hebert, who did layout. This publication was funded in part by an Extension Integrated Pest
Management Implementation grant from the National Institute for Food and Agriculture.

April 2017 About the Author

Dr. Alan T. Eaton, is an
Extension Specialist in
Entomology and a professor
at the University of New
Hampshire. Much of his work
is on management of fruit pests
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