Wireworms
Wireworms are the larval stage of the click beetle. There are several species of wireworms, distributed throughout most of the world. Wireworms are very common in most types of soil and can be found year round.
Wireworms feed on a wide range of plants. Commercially, they are a big pest of corn and potatoes, but in home gardens they will feast on what’s available. If they feed on the roots, the plants will be slow to grow, with poor vigor and low yields. Wireworms may burrow right into root crops, like potatoes, deforming the tuber and making holes that invite disease.
Wireworm larvae look like short reddish brown worms. They are about ½ inch long. Larvae can take two to six years to fully mature, eating the whole time.
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Identification and Control Information
- Fact Sheet: Wireworms (PDF)—Maine Potato IPM Program
- Insect Pests of the Home Garden Fact Sheet: Wireworms (PDF)—Rutgers Cooperative Research & Extension
- Pest Management Fact Sheet: Soil Insect Pests of Vegetables—University of Maine Cooperative Extension
[Photo: Frank Peairs, Colorado State University, Bugwood.org]