Harpalus pensylvanicus De Geer (Coleoptera: Carabidae), samples of which have been collected in all of the contiguous 48 States and most of southern Canada, is the 2nd most common carabid species in cropland in South Dakota and specimens are active in fields during August and September. Oviposition occurs from early August to early October, the species overwinters in soil as 1st-, 2nd-, and 3rd-stage larvae, and many individuals survive as adults through the 2nd winter in soil and are able to oviposit again the following autumn. The adult beetles accept a variety of plant and animal matter as food; the larval food is not positively determined but may consist mostly of soil microorganisms. However, both adults and larvae were observed to eat various stages of western corn rootworms, Diabrotica virgifera, LeConte, in the laboratory. When the soil is moist, the larvae construct vertical burrows and push the excavated soil to the surface to form tumuli.
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Vernon M. Kirk (1973) studied this question.