The Japanese Beetle 

            The Popilla Japonica, as it is referred to in the scientific world, is a species of scarab beetle that originated in Japan. Contrary to the dark, armored beetles that are commonly displayed in movies and other forms of media, the Japanese Beetle is an elegant arrangement of divisions of bright colors. The unity of difference represented in the Japanese Beetle’s vibrant colors is what breaks the standards of beetle appearance and encourages people to look at beetles for their beauty rather than in fear or disgust.  

             The Japanese Beetle happens to be one of the most destructive invasive species known to American ecosystems. Facing no natural predators, a readily available source of food, plenty of turf for larval development, a warm climate, and the fact that they were fairly undetected by humans for the first four years they existed in the United States, the beetle is a pest capable of severe damage. While some states are starting to get beetle populations under control, the bug continues to terrorize up to 300 species of flowers, grasses and roots. The beetle even became a part of Idaho’s history when Boise faced an infestation in 2011. Dr. Paul Castrovillo, a local entomologist and curator of Orma J. Smith museum, was the one responsible for restoring Boise to a Japanese Beetle free zone just this year. The Japanese Beetle acquired this impressive resume as a pest through a tactic called skeletonizing, in which adult beetles consume the leafy tissue between the veins. Without properly functioning leaves, plants struggle to photosynthesize the appropriate amount of nutrients needed to survive and reproduce.

              After analyzing the beetle as an insect, pest and even a part of Idaho’s history, there is one common theme that is present no matter how you look at the beetle. The Japanese Beetle is a catalyst for change. While one might doubt a beetle’s capacity to inspire and cause change, the beetle proves more powerful than one might think. If one were to examine the Japanese Beetle as solely an object, it would simply be an unmoving specimen laying in a glass case. Yet, there is much more to the beetle. It, along with all other objects, are multi-dimensional entities that interact with and form connections with the things around them. In order to comprehend the multi-dimensional nature of objects though, people must alter the way they view and interact with objects. The Japanese Beetle is a major proponent of this change because it is an example of an object that has a lot more to it than meets the eye. Its true, multi-disciplinary form; an artistically composed masterpiece, a severely destructive pest, a part of Idaho’s history, and most importantly, a catalyst for change, would not have been revealed if it weren’t for people taking the time to look at the Japanese Beetle as more than an object.