Subject: Small box-like fly?
Geographic location of the bug: Western Pennsylvania
Date: 08/19/2019
Time: 12:02 AM EDT
Your letter to the bugman: Hi! Just yesterday, this odd tiny, clear/brown fly landed on my hand. The bottom half of the wings are totally square. The pattern sort of makes it look like a lobster? I’ve never seen one of these before in any season, not just summer, so I’d love to know what it is! I know it’s a little hard to see, I didn’t want to get too close without scaring it away.
How you want your letter signed: Bugfriend
Dear Bugfriend,
Perhaps this Lace Bug in the family Tingidae was attracted to your festive nail finish. We believe, based on this BugGuide image, that it is a Walnut Lace Bug, Corythucha juglandis. According to BugGuide: “Both adults and nymphs are found together on the lower surfaces of walnut leaflets where they suck the sap from the leaves. More than 100 nymphs and adults may be present at one time on one leaflet. Areas where they have fed are easily recognized because of cast skins, excrement, and dark, discolored patches of leaf. The upper leaf surface is stippled with tiny white spots that give the upper leaf surface a whitish appearance. Leaves of heavily infested trees may turn brown and fall off.”