ADULTS
Lily leaf beetle adults overwinter in the soil or leaf litter. They emerge with the first warm days of spring and begin to feed, mate and lay eggs on growing lilies. (photo: T. Haye)
EGGS
Eggs are laid in linear groups of 3-12 on the undersides of leaves. (photo: T. Haye)
LARVAE
The larvae are the most damaging (and disgusting!) life stage. They cover themselves in their own excrement, which deters predators. (photo: T. Haye)
PUPAE
After going through four instars (stages), the larvae leave the plant and form a cocoon by gluing soil particles together. By mid-summer the new adults emerge. (photo: T. Haye)