Assassin Bugs | Missouri Department Of Conservation

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Assassin Bugs

Field Guide

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Media Safety Concerns Name Venomous Scientific Name Nearly 200 species in North America north of Mexico Family Reduviidae (assassin bugs) in the order Hemiptera (true bugs) Description

Like most true bugs, members of the assassin bug family have membranous wings that fold flat along the back when at rest (often creating an X pattern on the back) and strawlike mouthparts specialized for piercing and sucking. Assassin bugs are a very large group with diverse body forms, but most are black or brown (sometimes orange, yellow, or red) with a rather oval body. The head is usually narrow and the antennae long, thin, and often jointed. All have a clawlike beak with 3 segments that can fold into a groove beneath the insect’s body. The first segment on the first pair of legs is usually thickened, and the sides of the abdomen often extend beyond wings. Hatchlings often look like ants or baby praying mantises.

The assassin bug family includes the wheel bug (Arilus cristatus), a large, imposing insect identified by its neck crest that looks like the blade of a circular saw, and ambush bugs (numerous species in subfamily Phymatinae), which are relatively small, well camouflaged, and used to be placed in their own family.

Similar species: Leaf-footed bugs (family Coreidae) are commonly mistaken for assassin bugs. Most leaf-footed bugs have flattened, leaflike extensions on their hind legs. Leaf-footed bugs are plant-eaters. The squash bug is one example.

Size

Length: to 1½ inches (varies with species).

Where To Find

Statewide.

Habitat and Conservation

Assassin bugs are good flyers and walkers. They prowl around trees, gardens, and grassy areas, hunting other insects. Most people consider them beneficial, as they help control many insect pests. Handling assassin bugs is not recommended, as they can inflict a painful bite. They sometimes land on people but can be brushed off easily, if they do not soon fly away on their own. Crushing or slapping at them generally causes them to bite.

Food

Like many other true bugs (such as cicadas, aphids, stinkbugs, and leafhoppers), assassin bugs have strawlike mouthparts adapted for sucking nutrients — in this case, it’s the juices of other insects. (One group of assassin bugs sucks blood.) Much like a single-fanged spider, an assassin bug bites its prey, delivering a venom that subdues its insect prey and causes its tissues to liquefy. The “meat” of the insect can then be sucked up through the assassin bug’s strawlike beak.

Status

Common.

Life Cycle

Life Cycle

Like many insects, assassin bugs hatch from eggs and molt through a number of immature stages (nymphs) before a final molt in which they emerge as a winged, sexually mature adult. The various stages look generally alike, except that the final stage has wings. This insect life cycle is called incomplete metamorphosis. (The alternative — complete metamorphosis — is the kind undergone by insects like butterflies and beetles, whose wormlike larvae are strikingly different than the adults.)

Human Connections

People who have been bitten by assassin bugs probably are not in love with them. But to the gardener, the farmer, and anyone else “bugged” by insects, the assassin bug is a friend. Luckily, it is easy to avoid getting bitten.

Ecosystem Connections

Assassin bugs are much like spiders and praying mantises: They are top predators in the world of insects, but in the world of vertebrates (birds, mammals, reptiles, and large amphibians and fish), they can be tasty snacks.

Title Media Gallery Image Caption Although many species of assassin bugs are black or brown, some are more brightly colored. This is probably species Pselliopus barberi, commonly called the orange assassin bug. Credit Donna Brunet Right to Use Use of this image is restricted to MDC only on this page 1/11 Image Caption The orange assassin bug, Pselliopus barberi, is about ½ inch long and is one of our most attractive non-butterfly insects. They overwinter as adults under loose bark. Credit Julianna Schroeder Right to Use Use of this image is restricted to MDC only 2/11 Image Caption The spiny assassin bug, Sinea spinipes, is about ½ inch long. Note the spiny legs, and the relatively blunt tubercles on the front of the body, just behind the head. Credit Julianna Schroeder Right to Use Use of this image is restricted to MDC only 3/11 Image Caption The pale green assassin bug (Zelus luridus) is green. The wings may be tan or brown. There are a pair of spines on the back corners of the shieldlike shoulder plate. Credit Julianna Schroeder Right to Use Use of this image is restricted to MDC only 4/11 Image Caption Adult wheel bugs are easily identified by the coglike “wheel” on the back. Note the narrow head bearing a single, clawlike tube used for piercing and injecting venom into their prey. Credit Donna Brunet Right to Use Use of this image is restricted to MDC only 5/11 Image Caption The immature nymphs of wheel bugs are reddish with black legs. They can look rather spiderlike or antlike. They grow slowly and devour many insects as the season progresses. Note the jointed antennae. Credit Donna Brunet Right to Use Use of this image is restricted to MDC only on this page 6/11 Image Caption The various species of jagged ambush bugs (Phymata spp.), while quite common, can be very difficult to distinguish from one another. Color is not a good ID feature. Credit Jim Rathert Right to Use Photo by Jim Rathert, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation 7/11 Image Caption Ambush bugs use the same hunting strategy as flower crab spiders: they sit, motionless, in a flower, and wait for an insect to come near. Note the wide, powerful forelegs characteristic of these insects. Credit Jim Rathert Right to Use Photo by Jim Rathert, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation 8/11 Image Caption Ambush bugs are predators that play a role in controlling the populations of the insects they eat. In turn, these small insects are preyed upon by a variety of larger predators. Credit Jim Rathert Right to Use Photo by Jim Rathert, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation 9/11 Image Caption Ambush bugs occur in open, sunny areas, such as prairies, roadsides, and fields, because they are almost always found on goldenrods, thistles, and other flowers in the sunflower/daisy family. Credit Jim Rathert Right to Use Photo by Jim Rathert, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation 10/11 Image Caption The color of ambush bugs can vary quite a bit within a single species. Most are gold, yellow, leaf-green, tan, brown, or white, often with dark mottled patches or bands. Right to Use Photo by MDC Staff, courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation 11/11 Image Image Image Image Image Image Image Image Image Image Image Title Similar Species Similar Species Media Wheel Bug Media Pale Green Assassin Bug Media Spiny Assassin Bug Media Orange Assassin Bug Media Ambush Bugs Media Leaf-Footed Bugs (Coreids) Media Squash Bugs Media Stink Bugs Media Plant Bugs (Mirids) Media Eastern Boxelder Bug Media Seed Bugs Media Brown Marmorated Stink Bug About Land Invertebrates in Missouri Invertebrates are animals without backbones, including earthworms, slugs, snails, and arthropods. Arthropods—invertebrates with “jointed legs” — are a group of invertebrates that includes crayfish, shrimp, millipedes, centipedes, mites, spiders, and insects. There may be as many as 10 million species of insects alive on earth today, and they probably constitute more than 90 percent all animal species.

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