Stinkbug with hairy legs?
Location: El Paso, TX
May 29, 2011 1:20 am
Hello WTB! It’s nice and hot here in Texas and the bugs are really starting to invite themselves into the house. I’m thinking that this tiny fellow is from the stinkbug family, but I’ve never seen one with hairy legs like that. Can stinkbugs have hairy legs or is this actually a kind of roach? Thanks for any help!
Signature: Jen

Burrowing Bug

Hi Jen,
Though this is not a Stink Bug it is a related True Bug in the suborder Heteroptera.  This is a Burrowing Bug in the family Cydnidae based on some images posted to BugGuide.  We are very excited to be creating a new subcategory for Digger Bugs thanks to your photograph.  We will also search our archives to see if there are any other Burrowing Bugs buried there.

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Unidentified Bug.
Dear Bugman,
I have attached a picture of a bug that has been, well, bugging us for the past couple of weeks, during our rainy season. They only seem to come out at night, very much attracted to lights and have a rather distinctive smell. They seem quite persistent as well as they have a knack of getting in everywhere. The locals up here in Orapa, Botswana have a name for it – Podile – but that doesn’t help my search at all. Also, great site – really informative. (and creepy.)
Regards,
Shaun Nel.
Snr C&I Software Technician
Debswana Diamond Company
Orapa & Letlhakane Mines
Botswana

Hi Shaun,
Nice photo of Burrowing Bugs or Burrower Bugs in the Family Cydnidae. We found a British Website with this information: “Salient features of adults. Terrestrial. Phytophagous (including one root-sucking burrower). Tiny to small; 3

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what is it?
Hi,
Sorry, I am new at photographing bugs – this is the best I could do. I collected these bugs from our house and then dumped them on a tile – so some are on their back and two are stuck together on the 19 – Can you identify them? Unfortunately they are all over the neighborhood. Our neighborhood is under heavy construction since many homes were burned to the ground during the So. Cal wildfires in Oct. 2003. We are back in a newly rebuilt home and have had our share of ants to deal with. But this is a new one – we ’ re hoping these are not Powder Post Beetle s . Some of our neighbors are sure these are ticks. They have been sited in neighboring towns too – that are not under heavy construction. We have a newly built two-story house and they continue to appear upstairs and downstairs by the dozens. OK, we had fire, we had terrible rains last year, but hopefully there are no locusts on th e way. All kidding aside, we are so happy to be home and hope that you can tell us that this bug isn ’ t something that can destroy our home or carpet or hurt our animals. Thanks!
Lynda Felder

Hi Lynda,
These are neither ticks nor powderpost beetles, but Burrower Bugs, Family Cydnidae. According to Borror and Delong: “They are usually found burrowing beneath stones or boards, in sand, or in the mold about the roots of grass tufts; sometimes they are found in ant nests.” This might be Cyrtomenus mirabilis, a species found in the South and Southwest.

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Daniel;
Here are some close ups of that bug I was mentioning: What kind of bug is this?
chris

Hi Chris,
We seem to have lost your original letter concerning this bug. It also had us stumped for quite some time. It is a Burrower Bug, Family Cydnidae. According to Borror and Delong: “They are usually found burrowing beneath stones or boards, in sand, or in the mold about the roots of grass tufts; sometimes they are found in ant nests.”

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