Helen Rhue, age 11  of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, for her question:

HOW DID THE JAPANESE BEETLE GET TO AMERICA?

The Japanese beetle is a pest that injures trees, crops and garden plants. The creature came to the United States and Canada about 1916. It was found in roots of nursery plants imported from Japan.

The Japanese beetle quickly spread and is now found doing damage

in all of the states north of Georgia and east of Missouri. The largest number is found along the Middle Atlantic Seaboard.

Estimates of the average yearly damage caused by the beetle range up to $20 million.

A Japanese beetle will lay its eggs in the soil in midsummer. The young insects, called grubs, hatch in about two weeks, burrow into the soil and eat roots until the following spring.