Overview
- A mass flight of May beetles (Maikäfer) is now underway in the Hessisches Ried and nearby towns in southern Hesse, with experts estimating roughly half a billion insects active over the next six to eight weeks.
- Warm, dry weather set the flights in motion, and biologists say long-term drainage and falling groundwater left drier, sandy soils that suit the beetles’ egg-laying.
- Adults live for about six weeks and feed on fresh oak leaves, using fan-like antennae to find new growth and mates.
- After females lay eggs, the soil-dwelling larvae feed on grass and then tree roots, which can further weaken forests already hurt by drought.
- Berlin and Brandenburg are not seeing a similar surge this year, and experts note emergence depends on warm, moist soil, so appearances can come a few days before or after May 1.