Garden Pests and Diseases: Friend or Foe #2, 1 by Night_Bloom

Night_Bloom wrote:
A continuation of "Friend or Foe" where I attempt to answer your questions about critters in your garden and provide examples of good or harmless critters that might be mistaken as harmful.

Feel free to post your pictures and questions concerning beneficial insects in your gardens.


I think that like the previous thread, I'll start us off with a beneficial bug from the order of "true bugs" - the hemiptera.

Unlike the predatory stink bugs, this bug doesn't necessarily look like one that would harm your plants, it just looks intimidating. This is a wheel bug (family Reduviidae), and it can grow up to an inch in size. There are some large plant-sucking bugs called leaf-footed bugs in the family Coreidae that look a bit similar in shape and size, but they will not have the tell-tale protrusion on their back that resembles half a "wheel". If you see that, then you know that you have a wheel bug. There's no need to look for the large beak, but like most predatory Hemiptera, the wheel bug does have one. This bug can also give you a nasty bite if it is mishandled, so wear gloves if you are concerned and approach it gently. Wheel bugs eat caterpillars and other larger sized insects.

Here's a link to the original thread... http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/503459/

And here is what a wheel bug looks like...

This message was edited May 19, 2005 2:15 AM