#dangerous buges

The ⚠️ four-spotted sap beetle ⚠️

If you are a gardener and you grow your own crops, keep an eye out for this one! Not only can they damage crops, but they can make them unsafe to eat, as they carry pathogens and can cause mycotoxin-producing fungi to grow on said crops and fruit. This toxin can cause acute poisoning (vomiting and abdominal pain) all the way to cancer and organ failure.

Listen, I love my bugs, with everything in me, but I also fully acknowledge that many of them can be dangerous, even if they don't bite or sting.

If you grow your own crops and you see these beetles around them, just throw them out, don't risk it. Don't try to rinse it, don't try to cut the fungi off, just don't risk it. Sweet strawberries are not worth potentially getting cancer, my loves

To prevent sap beetles in the garden, get rid of any decaying matter. Given that I am a gardener, myself, I understand this can be difficult for certain fertilizers and compost, since that's what the plants feed on.

But the four-spotted sap beetles are very attracted to rotting or damaged fruits and crops, so if you have crops that are bruised and starting to decay, remove them!

Check your harvest before consuming! Four-spotted sap beetles may also burrow inside the fruits, leaving behind holes that look similar to holes created by slugs

Pesticides don't seem to work on these guys, and the University of Minnesota Extension program actually recommends against using them. What some people do, instead, is set out bait traps using decaying fruit, away from their garden

Now, if you see one in your house, like I did, please do not panic. You won't get poisoned just by being near it, you'd have to actually consume something the beetle has contaminated. Just stay calm and remove the beetle :)

I put mine back outside where he belongs

And when it comes time to restart my garden for the spring, I'll just take proper precautions to ensure my crops are safe and clean, checking them daily