Text adapted from Turfgrass Pest Management: A Guide to Major Turfgrass Pests in Oklahoma. Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service.

INSECT AND DESCRIPTION: Chinch bug, Blissus spp. Adults are about 1/5 inch long, black with nearly all white wings which are folded flat over the body. There are both long and short-winged forms. The young are bright red but turn black as they approach the adult stage.

LIFE HISTORY AND HABITS: There appear to be at least three generations a year, with all stages present in any month. The highest populations occur during the summer and at this time development from egg to adult takes about 6 weeks.

SUSCEPTIBLE PLANTS: Only St. Augustine grass is seriously damaged.

DAMAGE CAUSED: Yellowish to brownish patched in lawn.

METHOD OF DETECTION: Close examination of damaged and adjacent areas. Flotation, as described earlier under detection and survey techniques, can be used to find chinch bug.