It is an effective killer of the pest but only works on certain strains of leafy spurge, namely the subgenus Esula of the genus Euphorbia.

[2][1] The beetles have a singular diet, only eating certain varieties of leafy spurge.

The most reliable indicator of the presence of leafy spurge stem boring beetles is ring-like grooves chewed around leafy spurge stems.

They are combined with about 10 other Eurasian insect species, and are used to biologically control leafy spurge.

[1] Although the beetle is an introduced, non-native species to the US and Canada, it has not been detrimental to the ecosystems there in any way.