Subject: what is this guy?
Location: Tacoma, WA
October 9, 2013 4:19 pm
Found a cool bug. What is it?
Signature: Michelle
Dear Michelle,
This is a Western Conifer Seed Bug, Leptoglossus occidentalis, and you can compare your photo to this individual on BugGuide. You have provided one of the only images of the Western Conifer Seed Bug in our archives that was sighted in its natural range, the Pacific Northwest. At some point in about the 1950s, there was a major range expansion, perhaps due to human intervention, and the Western Conifer Seed Bug is now found in many parts of North America according to the BugGuide data. In the late 20th Century, it was introduced to Europe where it is now established. We get numerous reports when cooler weather sets in because the Western Conifer Seed Bug seeks shelter from winter weather by hibernating indoors, so they enter homes. See BugGuide for more information.