Adult beetles will lay eggs in the soil in the late summer.
Those eggs will hatch out and will become the damaging white grubs that we want to prevent! Grubs damage the yard by chewing off the root systems of the grass plants in widespread areas. These areas of damage can be up to 10-20 feet in diameter! These areas will turn brown becasue the roots system is damaged to the point that it kills the grass in that area.
These area will not recover on their own. They will require reseeding to replenish the grass in that area.
The grubs that you see early in the year, are grubs that have survived the winter. They are coming up to the surface to transition into adult flying beetles. During this time, those grubs are no longer feeding on plant roots. Therefore, are not a cause for concern because they are not activley causing damage.