Assassin bugs can bite humans, so it is important to understand what these bugs are all about. For example, where do assassin bugs live? What do they eat? Let’s find out the answers to these questions below.
The assassin bug is one of those garden pests that you wouldn’t want indoors at any cost. These bugs can be a menace and a gardener’s friend at the same time.
While these beneficial insects help keep gardens free of aphids and other pests, some of them are notorious for biting humans, and one in particular (the kissing bug) on the face!
Read on to learn how and where you can find these insects in and around your home.
What are They?
The assassin bug earns its name from its unique hunting technique – it preys on garden pests by stabbing them with its beak. There are over 7,000 species of assassin bugs.
Wheel bugs, kissing bugs, and milkweed assassins are among the common assassin bugs you will find in North America.
You can easily identify an assassin bug thanks to its unique appearance. These insects have dark gray or tan bodies with spiky bumps on their backs.
Depending on the species, the bug may also have a longer bump under its abdomen and red dots on the sides.
Some assassin bug species are more colorful, which helps them camouflage. When fully grown, most assassin bugs are between 0.5 to 0.75 inches long. They have a shield-shaped body and a curved straw-like proboscis.
Where Do They Live?
Although assassin bugs weren’t as common in North America earlier, you can now find plenty of them in the southern two-thirds of the country.
As with many other species, global warming has forced assassin bugs to spread to what were earlier colder regions.
These bugs are particularly abundant in Texas, Arizona, California, and New Mexico. Besides the US, you can also find them in South America and Latin America.
It’s hard to pinpoint a particular assassin bug habitat, for these predatory insects can thrive in a variety of environments. These range from dense forests and mountains to homes and chicken coops!
As long as you live in one of the regions where these bugs are found, you can never rule out the chance of one of them ending up in your mattress.
Do They Bite?
It’s mostly the painful bites of the assassin bug that make this otherwise beneficial insect an unpleasant guest.
Some assassin bugs, like the kissing bug, bite humans and other vertebrae to suck blood using their proboscis.
They bite repeatedly and usually target areas around the eyes or the lips. However, you should note that most species of assassin bugs usually don’t bite humans.
Besides being painful, the bite of an assassin bug can give rise to symptoms like hives, breathing difficulties, swelling, etc., if you are allergic.
If you find an assassin bug in your home, you should handle it carefully to avoid getting bitten.
Do They Spread Disease?
Yes, and this is yet another reason why you should stay clear of assassin bugs and keep them out of your home.
Apart from the symptoms caused by its bite, the kissing bug is a spreader of the Chagas disease to humans.
The virus that causes this disease hides in the fecal matter of these bugs. It is a potentially life-threatening parasitic disease with symptoms like body aches, fever, headache, and fatigue.
What makes it worse is the fact that we don’t have a cure or vaccine for Chagas disease yet – you will have to live with it once infected.
Are They Poisonous?
Yes, assassin bugs produce two different venoms, each of which contains more than 100 different toxins. It uses one of these venoms while hunting and feeding.
Like the venom of many other predatory insects, it paralyzes the prey and liquefies its insides. The bug uses another venom to defend itself from predators.
However, this venom is not potent enough to affect humans if you get bitten, so you don’t have to be worried about that.
Are They Beneficial?
Despite their tendency to bite humans, assassin bugs are beneficial insects that can help keep your garden free of pests.
They are a generalist predator species that hunt a vast range of insects for feeding, including larvae and nymphs of leaf beetles, true bugs and sawflies, and caterpillars.
Assassin bugs are indiscriminate eaters, so they also end up eating other beneficial bugs, which is counterproductive.
If you have a garden, keeping some assassin bugs there might be a good idea, but don’t let their population grow too large.
If you find one or two assassin bugs in your home, just capture them and release them out in your garden.
Do They Fly?
Yes, assassin bugs are winged insects capable of flying. However, most assassin bug species are rather bad fliers.
The bee assassin bug is an exception to this and is quite good at flying. This bug happens to be a particularly successful predator, thanks to the sticky hairs on its front legs, which help it grab its prey better.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do assassin bugs like to live?
Assassin bugs are hardy insects capable of thriving even in harsh environments. However, they are more predominant in tropical regions.
Indoors, they love to stay in cold and dark places during the day. Some bugs, like the kissing bug, find mattresses and bed linens to be a perfect hideout.
What are assassin bugs attracted to?
Various flowers like marigolds, tansy, and dill tend to attract assassin bugs. This is something you can utilize to draw assassin bugs to your garden.
These bugs are also drawn to bright lights in houses at night, which is how they end up indoors.
How do you repel assassin bugs?
Seal up cracks and crevices to deny the bugs entry points. You can also install screens over your doors and windows and use bug-free light bulbs at home.
Synthetic pyrethroid sprays are effective at repelling assassin bugs, but using pesticides indoors might be unsafe.
What eats an assassin bug?
While the assassin bug is a powerful and skilled predator, there’s no dearth of predators that prey on assassin bugs either.
Praying mantises, rodents, spiders, and birds are some of them. Assassin bug nymphs often get eaten up by the larger assassin bugs too.
Wrapping up
If you live in American states such as Texas, California or Arizona, you have a good chance of finding a spined assassin bug on your property. If it’s in your home, carefully remove it and put it out in your garden.
Both wingless nymphs and full-grown assassin bugs are beneficial insects, so you can use both of them in your garden to control other pests.
However, make sure not to let their population grow too much. Thank you for reading!