Lawn · SWFL Pest Identifier
Southern Chinch Bug
Worth a pro look Damage or health risk grows quickly once established.
How to identify it
- Yellowing patches that start in the sunniest, driest spots and spread
- Damage looks exactly like drought but doesn’t green up after watering
- Part the grass at the patch edge: tiny black bugs with white wing marks
Size
Tiny (pinhead)
Where you'll see it
Lawn / garden
Looks like
Lawn damage · Crawler
Did you know
The #1 killer of St. Augustine lawns in Florida. The tell: drought stress recovers with water, chinch damage doesn’t.
What it means for you
They kill outward from the first patch — early treatment saves the lawn, late means resodding.
Not sure this is your bug?
Text a photo and a licensed local tech will identify it for free — or run it through the interactive identifier.
Similar lawn in SWFL
Mole Cricket
Worth a pro lookRaised, meandering surface tunnels like mini mole runs
Tropical Sod Webworm
Worth a pro lookSmall tan moths flush up when you mow
Fall Armyworm
Worth a pro lookLawn browns in patches seemingly overnight
White Grub
Worth a pro lookTurf lifts like loose carpet — roots are gone
Dealing With This One?
Get a real price online in about 60 seconds — or text us a photo first and we'll tell you honestly whether it even needs treatment.