Subject: Round black beetle with white margin and 6 white spots on rear of abdomen
Geographic location of the bug: Reno NV foothills 6000’ elevation
Date: 08/01/2019
Time: 02:00 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman: These smallish round beatles have surprised us by coming into the house by the dozens. Never saw them before. They are in scattered locations, mostly on the floor, and I don’t move much, but can move slowly or rather quickly if disturbed. I can’t figure out what they want or what they eat. Several are on the doorstep, anxious to come in if the door is opened.
They are round black beetles with white margin and 6 white spots on rear of abdomen.
How you want your letter signed: Carolyn
Dear Carolyn,
This is not a Beetle. It is an immature Stink Bug, and based on this BugGuide image, it is in the genus Chlorochroa, probably the Conchuela Stink Bug. According to BugGuide: “prefers fleshy fruits of various plants, especially agarita, balsam-gourd and mesquite; also on sage, yucca, mustards, prickly pear (Opuntia), and various crops (cotton, alfalfa, corn, sorghum, grapes, peas, tomatoes, etc.); primarily a seed feeder preferring leguminous plants (once mesquite beans dry, the bugs move to more succulent plants). “