In the southern United States, the name green June beetle is applied to a similar green-and-brown beetle that, in the adult stages, feeds on ripe figs and other fruit. The larvae, like those of the northern June beetle, live in the ground and eat plant roots but do little damage to important plants. The name June beetle is applied in Europe to beetles closely related and similar in habits to the June beetles of the northern United States.
Scientific classification: June bugs belong to the family Scarabaeidae of the order Coleoptera. May bugs are classified in the genus Phyllophaga. The green June beetle is classified as Cotinis nitida. European June beetles are classified in the genus Rhizotrogus.