Subject: Hong Kong Beauty bug
Location: Stanley, Hong Kong
September 25, 2014 3:58 pm
Hi
Recently moved to HK, and found this in my Hibiscus yesterday, 24 Sept. It is the tail end of summer, about 33C. About 1 inch long. We are quite close to the beach, although this bug appeared on a plant that I recently purchased and moved here from Kowloon. I have had the plant about 3 weeks.
Would love to know what it is, and if I should remove it to another plant to spare my garden. (There is a nearby undeveloped, jungley lot for the bug to emigrate to.)
Thanks
Signature: Margaret
Dear Margaret,
This is a Cotton Stainer or Red Bug in the family Pyrrhocoridae and we located a matching image on FlickR that is identified as Dysdercus cingulatus. We then found a reference where it is called a Hong Kong Stink Bug and the information: “Found mating and feeding on Ipomea on September 11, 2002 at Braemar Hill, North Point, and on Hibiscus.on August 10, 2003 at Pak Tam Chung, Sai Kung, Hong Kong SAR.” The latter link is not very accurate as the family is listed incorrectly. It is also pictured on iNaturalist.
