Green June Beetles

I've reared this species several times; it's not difficult.  The larvae eat the same kind of substrate as most other flower beetles, but fine sand needs to be mixed into the substrate (50/50 ratio) when the larvae reach full size, since they need it to make pupal cells.  The larvae can be kept in groups for pupation so long as they aren't crowded, but it may be preferable to keep them in small containers (e.g. 5.5 oz snack cups) during this stage, so that they can't disturb each other.

 
You can probably collect some in your local area - they're very common across much of the eastern and central US.  The adults emerge in response to summer rains, and fly low to the ground, since they lay eggs in soil.  You can also attract them, using the right kind of bait.

https://bugguide.net/node/view/520

 
I'm currently attempting to rear this species as well. My larvae are still L1. Good luck, and you should continue to update this thread so we can share info if you'd like.

 
I’ve also got a good amount of larvae now, and I can’t tell if they’re L2s or L3s but I’ll know soon enough.

Orin’s UGBB states that the larvae rely heavily on supplemental food (he specifically stated cracked corn in the book) and mine seem quite zealous in eating anything on the surface of the substrate

 
Bugboy3092 said:
I’ve also got a good amount of larvae now, and I can’t tell if they’re L2s or L3s but I’ll know soon enough.

Orin’s UGBB states that the larvae rely heavily on supplemental food (he specifically stated cracked corn in the book) and mine seem quite zealous in eating anything on the surface of the substrate
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I've been feeding mine wild birdseed but I haven't actually observed them eating. I assume that behavior will become more visible in later instars. They do seem to be growing slightly, however, and their abdomens are dark with food, so they must be eating something. Also, a lot of the seeds have been sprouting in the enclosure. Does this make them inedible to the larvae?

 
As mentioned in the video as far as I have observed (from my experience). For some reason they seem to benefit from some seeds growing. You will see in 2 1/2 months when I do the update

Since many sources say that they eat humus (sorry about miss pronunciation in the video) And also mold. I provide them humus, small pieces of wood and leaves, and bird seed.  Some of the bird seed is in fact cracked corn. And the larvae can decide whether to eat it or not. If they don’t decide to eat it then it becomes mold. Then they can eat that also, so even if it molds I do not remove it just in case.

Also some people suspect that they may nibble on roots so that is also why I put in bird seed.
 

In the wild I have witnessed L3 in the spring under rocks and logs. But I always find some plants that are under/ growing out of those areas. And also  Mold around them.

This is from what I discovered and I am no means an expert, but I am getting there.

Does Orin have a book that references C nitida? If so can you give me a link.

 
BensBeasts1 said:
That’s exactly what they like!
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I'm a little skeptical that C. nitida feeds on live plant roots. Orin makes it very clear in his book that they will starve if offered nothing else and most reliable sources online claim that they feed on decaying matter. Have you specifically observed your larvae feeding on live plant material?

 
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