Hayley Nelson - Iowa State University - Hayley Nelson explains what challenges cucumber beetles provide to growers of muskmelon and other cucurbit crops in the Midwest. 

Cucumber beetles provide a unique challenge to growers of muskmelon and other cucurbit crops in the Midwest. Spotted and striped cucumber beetles transmit bacterial wilt by feeding on infected plants. Beetles ingest the bacteria (Erwinia tracheiphila) and overwinter in soil. After emerging the following spring, beetles fly to nearby cucurbit crops to feed, continuing to spread bacterial wilt disease from plant to plant.