The adults are chafers, feeding on foliage of trees and shrubs. Although oaks are the favorite food source, adult May beetles also feed on the foliage of many other trees. Adults appear in late spring to summer. They may cause significant damage when emerging in large numbers. The larvae (called white grubs) feed on the roots of grasses and other plants. Larvae prefer lespedeza, sod and corn, but they too have additional host foods which include lawn grasses and nursery plantings. The insects pupate underground in the fall and emerge as adults the following spring. The occurrence of this beetle at Fontenelle Forest is not known.

Phyllophaga is a very large genus (more than 260 species) of beetles in the subfamily Melolonthinae. Beetles in this subfamily are also known as June bugs or June beetles. Many June bugs die after becoming exposed to light for too long. They can be found dead in the morning under porch lights, and bright windows.