On 7 July 2026, a Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica) was caught in Pont (Côte-d'Or), near a major road. The identification was confirmed the next day by the ANSES national reference laboratory (Entomology and Botany Unit). It is the second detection in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in less than a month — the first was on 16 June in Écot, in the Doubs. The prefecture and the DRAAF Bourgogne-Franche-Comté immediately stepped up trapping and are calling on the public to report any sightings. Here is why this sub-one-cent coin-sized insect is worrying the health services so much — and what you should — and shouldn't — do if you spot one in your garden.
The Japanese beetle: a pest under tight watch
Native to Japan and widespread in North America since the early 20th century, Popillia japonica has gradually colonised Europe. It was first detected in Italy in 2014, then in Switzerland in 2017, and in France in Haut-Rhin in the summer of 2025. Its spread is closely linked to milder winters and to road and rail transport flows from the Alpine area.
The insect is now classified by the European Union as a "priority quarantine organism" under Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072. In practical terms, its detection, keeping, transport and spread are banned, and Member States are legally obliged to set up surveillance, trapping and, where possible, eradication. In France, the DGAL (Directorate-General for Food) coordinates the system, supported regionally by the DRAAFs and the FREDONs (Regional Federations for the Defence against Harmful Organisms).
What does it really look like?
Recognising it is not obvious, because it can be confused with the garden chafer (Phyllopertha horticola) or the European rose chafer, both common and harmless species. A few discriminating features:
- Size: about 10 mm long and 6 mm wide — smaller than a 1 euro cent coin.
- Bright metallic green body on the back, with coppery-brown elytra that do not fully cover the abdomen.
- The major identifying sign: five tufts of white hairs on each side of the abdomen, and one additional tuft at the rear tip — six tufts in total. The garden chafer has none.
- Club-shaped antennae (lamellicorn beetles), like all scarab beetles.
Adults fly in full sun from June to September, with a peak in July — exactly the window of the Pont capture. They feed during the day and often cluster in large numbers on a single leaf or fruit, a gregarious behaviour that our European chafers do not show.
More than 300 host plants, from vines to roses
The insect is tiny and harmless to humans (it does not sting, bite or transmit disease), but its damage potential is considerable: it is extremely polyphagous, with more than 300 recorded host plants. Among those most relevant in France:
- Vines, a major economic issue in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté (Côte-d'Or is the heart of the Burgundy vineyard).
- Fruit trees: apple, plum, cherry, peach, apricot.
- Soft fruit: strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, grape.
- Maize, soya and sunflower, a risk for arable crops.
- Ornamentals: linden, maple, horse chestnut, plane tree, rose, lilac, wisteria.
- Lawns and turf, where the grubs (white grubs) attack roots in autumn and winter.
The adult defoliates the aerial parts within days: a linden leaf can be fully "skeletonised" by a group of 30 to 50 adults in under a week. The damage is comparable to that caused by the Western corn rootworm or, more dramatically, by some processionary caterpillars — see our dossier on oak processionary caterpillars, the other summer 2026 pest to understand the mechanics of heat-driven outbreaks.
Why the Pont detection is worrying
Three factors make the 7 July 2026 capture particularly concerning:
- Geographic location: Pont (21130) sits right next to the A31 motorway, a major axis linking Burgundy to Lorraine and Luxembourg. A "hitchhiking" beetle can be transported several hundred kilometres in just a few hours.
- Wine-growing context: Côte-d'Or is France's leading département by area of appellation vines. A lasting establishment of Popillia japonica could jeopardise up to 30 % of the harvest on the most exposed plots, according to Italian feedback.
- Recent history: the first French detection in Haut-Rhin in 2025, followed by Écot on 16 June 2026, trace a north-westerly progression that mirrors the dynamic observed in northern Italy between 2014 and 2020.
For all these reasons, the DRAAF Bourgogne-Franche-Comté has triggered an immediate reinforcement of trapping (pheromone traps and food-baited traps) in the communes within a 5 km radius of Pont, as well as a survey scheme along road and rail corridors.
What to do if you think you have seen one
The right reflex is not to kill it on the spot with an over-the-counter insecticide. Here is the procedure recommended by the DRAAF and ANSES:
- Do not let it go and do not release it: capture it in a sealed jar (or wrap it in absorbent paper and place it in a freezer for 24 h to kill it).
- Photograph it closely, showing if possible the white tufts of hairs on the abdomen and the metallic green colour of the back.
- Note the date, exact location (address, town, postcode) and the support you found it on (plant, windscreen, ground…).
- Report it to the DRAAF Bourgogne-Franche-Comté:
- by email to alerte-vegetaux-sral.draaf-bourgogne-franche-comte@agriculture.gouv.fr
- via the online form on demarches-simplifiees.fr (capture/observation declaration)
- by phone on +33 3.39.59.40.95 (during office hours)
- Keep the specimen in the freezer in case further analysis is requested.
Outside Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, reports go to your regional DRAAF or via the "Signalement espèce" application developed by the Office français de la biodiversité (OFB). In the Paris region, for example, FREDON Île-de-France centralises reports.
What if you find some in your garden?
Eradicating a confirmed outbreak is not a do-it-yourself project. It involves pheromone traps, biological treatments based on Bacillus thuringiensis japonensis (Btj) targeting the larvae in the soil, and, in some cases, foliar sprays against adults. This is exactly the scope of a licensed pest control professional: see our pest control and green-space protection services.
As a precaution, if you are in a surveillance zone (Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Grand Est, PACA, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes) or if you have spotted an individual in your garden, a few simple steps reduce the risk of establishment:
- Inspect the foliage of vines, roses, lindens and fruit trees regularly in summer (a quick look once a week is enough).
- Monitor the lawn in spring and autumn: yellow patches that detach from the soil suggest a white grub attack (chafer or, potentially, Popillia larvae).
- Do not move soil, potted plants or turf from a zone where the insect has been detected, to avoid transporting larvae.
- Trap adults only if you are within a DRAAF-validated perimeter and with approved traps: a homemade trap attracts more insects than it catches and may worsen the spread.
For more on garden prevention and choosing the right products (traps, biological treatments, contact repellents), see our guide to choosing the right pest-control products or our pricing page to estimate the cost of a professional intervention.
And elsewhere in France?
Popillia japonica is not yet established in metropolitan France as a reproducing population, but vigilance is at its highest. The regions most exposed are those with the road and rail flows to and from Italy and Switzerland:
- Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (Rhône valley, Lyon and Grenoble urban areas).
- Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (Nice-Italy axis, already under surveillance).
- Grand Est (first French outbreak in 2025 in Haut-Rhin).
- Bourgogne-Franche-Comté (Écot and Pont outbreaks in 2026).
- Occitanie and Nouvelle-Aquitaine (southern Mediterranean axis).
The hotter and drier climate expected over the Mediterranean arc and the South-West this summer 2026, according to Météo-France, is precisely the kind of conditions that favour the insect's full life cycle — a point we already detailed for the tiger mosquito, another invasive species under heightened surveillance this summer.
AntinuisiblePro's view
The Japanese beetle is not yet a daily threat to French gardens, but the Pont detection shows the issue is no longer theoretical. Rigorous reporting and the fast response of the State services (DRAAF, ANSES, FREDON) are the two best safeguards against lasting establishment. For professionals and individuals noticing unusual summer damage on roses, lindens, vines or fruit trees, an early diagnosis lets you act before the population gets established.
AntinuisiblePro operates across the whole Paris region and neighbouring départements for the diagnosis, trapping and treatment of invasive insect infestations (Japanese beetle, chestnut gall wasp, tiger mosquito, electric ant…). For a free on-site diagnosis, contact our experts; in case of a major outbreak on a sensitive crop or site, request a fast 24-48 h intervention.
