Currently viewing the category: "Seed Bugs"
What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Large Milkweed Bug

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Subject:  Milkweed Bug
Geographic location of the bug:  Central Florida
Date: 02/14/2019
Time: 12:04 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Hello Bugman!
While visiting friends in Rockledge, Florida, they showed me one of their milkweed plants that had many of these milkweed bugs on them. I haven’t, in the past, considered them to be harmful to milkweed, but would (roughly) 20 insects on one plant kill the it?
They are pesticide-free (unlike much of the rest of Florida ah-hem), so they’re either letting them be or picking them off. What advice can I give them?
Thank you!
How you want your letter signed:  Kenda

Large Milkweed Bug

Hi Kenda,
Large Milkweed Bugs will not harm the plant.  They do feed on seeds, so large numbers of Large Milkweed Bugs might reduce seed production, but again, they do not harm the milkweed plants.

Excellent news! Thanks for all you do, Daniel, to make the planet a better place!
Cheers,
Kenda

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Mating Small Milkweed Bugs

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Subject:  What is the Scientific name of this bug
Geographic location of the bug:  Hemet California
Date: 08/28/2018
Time: 10:17 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Can you help me identify the bug in the accompanying picture
How you want your letter signed:  doesn’ matter

Mating Small Milkweed Bugs

These are mating Small Milkweed Bugs, Lygaeus kalmii.  They are a benign species that does not harm plants in the garden.

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Large Milkweed Bug

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Subject:  Red and black bug
Geographic location of the bug:  Laguna Beach CA
Date: 08/04/2018
Time: 01:25 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  These bugs are constantly  on my milk weed Will they hurt the small monarch caterpillars?
How you want your letter signed:  KathyG

Large Milkweed Bug

Dear KathyG,
This is a Large Milkweed Bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus, and it is part of the rich diversity of insects that are associated with milkweed.  Large Milkweed Bugs will not harm your Monarch Caterpillars nor will they harm the plants, but they will reduce the number of viable seeds the plant produces because according to BugGuide:  “Seeds of milkweed plants.”  Like Monarchs, they benefit from the toxins produced by milkweed plants and like Monarchs, they sport aposomatic warning colors because according to BugGuide:  “In the course of feeding these bugs accumulate toxins from the milkweed, which can potentially sicken any predators foolish enough to ignore the bright colors which warn of their toxicity.” 

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Elm Seed Bug

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Subject:  Is this a kissing bug?
Geographic location of the bug:  Missoula, MT
Date: 08/04/2018
Time: 04:15 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  Found this indoors today,  it landed on my face and it smelled. Thought it could be a stink bug, but the red marking on its body remind me of a kissing bug.  Do kissing bugs smell? I don’t think it’s a west conifer seed bug since the head looks round, and I don’t think the legs were barbed but i’m not sure. I crushed it before getting a good luck at it.
How you want your letter signed:  Jen

Elm Seed Bug

Dear Jen,
This is not a Kissing Bug, but it is a problem nonetheless.  It is an invasive Elm Seed Bug, Arocatus melanocephalus, and according to BugGuide:  “Native to, and widespread in S. & C. Europe, established and spreading in w. NA” and “Can emit unpleasant odor, especially when crushed.”  BugGuide also notes:  “Doesn’t pose a threat to trees, but may show up indoors in huge numbers” and “Invades homes during summer, may stay through the winter.” 

Elm Seed Bug

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Mating Whitecrossed Seed Bugs

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Subject:  Red and black bugs with triangle pattern on the back
Geographic location of the bug:  Seattle, WA
Date: 07/17/2018
Time: 01:26 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  What is this bug?  Is it bad for my house and my garden?  If it is, what is the best way to kill/remove them? Thank you.
How you want your letter signed:  Tony Chan

Mating Whitecrossed Seed Bugs

Dear Tony,
These are mating Whitecrossed Seed Bugs and according to BugGuide an alternate name is  “Ragwort Seed Bug” which we interpret to mean that it will feed on seeds of ragwort, reducing the subsequent generations of what is widely considered a weed, though according to Wikipedia:  “Although the plant is often unwanted by landowners because it is considered a weed by many, it provides a great deal of nectar for pollinators. It was rated in the top 10 for most nectar production (nectar per unit cover per year) in a UK plants survey conducted by the AgriLand project which is supported by the UK Insect Pollinators Initiative. It also was the top producer of nectar sugar in another study in Britain, with a production per floral unit of (2921 ± 448μg)”.  Since Seed Bugs feed on seeds, they are not normally considered injurious to plants.  We do not provide extermination advice.

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination

Small Milkweed Bug

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Subject:  Beetle ID
Geographic location of the bug:  Denver, co
Date: 05/15/2018
Time: 06:01 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman:  What is this bug?
How you want your letter signed:  Jon orsborn

Small MIlkweed Bug

Dear Jon,
This is not a beetle.  It is a Small Milkweed Bug, Lygaeus kalmii. 

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What's That Bug? does not endorse extermination