Skip to main content
The Wild Pest
Book
Browse by category

True Bugs

Hemiptera — the original 'bugs.' Stink, suck, and sometimes bite.

37 on file

On File
A common bed bug (Cimex lectularius), the apple-seed-sized parasitic insect.
Outlaw
Six Legs79
Alias
Cimex lectularius

Common Bed Bug

Survives a year without feeding. Has been with humans for 3,500 years. Wants nothing to do with you — except your blood.

Read the file→
On File
A periodical cicada (Magicicada septendecim) on a leaf, showing the distinctive red eyes and orange wing veins.
Curious
Six Legs85
Alias
Magicicada septendecim

Periodical Cicada (17-Year)

Spends 17 years underground. Emerges by the trillion. Picks 17 because it's prime.

Read the file→
On File
An adult spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) showing the spotted gray forewings and red-and-black hindwings.
Outlaw
Six Legs73
Alias
Lycorma delicatula

Spotted Lanternfly

The bug your state told you to step on. Invasive, destructive, gorgeous, tasty.

Read the file→
On File
An assassin bug (Reduvius personatus), elongated black-and-orange body with the characteristic curved rostrum visible.
Curious
Six Legs82
Alias
Reduvius personatus

Assassin Bug

Liquefies prey from inside out. Wears disguises of dust, lint, or the corpses of past kills.

Read the file→
On File
A giant water bug (Lethocerus americanus), broad flat brown body with raptorial forelegs and pointed rostrum visible.
Outlaw
Six Legs85
Alias
Lethocerus americanus

Giant Water Bug

Largest true bug on Earth. Eats frogs and turtles. Bite is worse than a wasp sting. Father carries the eggs.

Read the file→
On File
A kissing bug (Triatoma infestans), elongated dark brown body with orange-edged abdomen typical of the species.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs80
Alias
Triatoma infestans

Kissing Bug

Bites your face at night. Defecates on the wound. Carries Chagas disease — kills 12,000 a year.

Read the file→
On File
A brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys), shield-shaped marbled brown body with characteristic banded antennae.
Outlaw
Six Legs72
Alias
Halyomorpha halys

Brown Marmorated Stink Bug

Invasive Asian shield-bug. Devastates apples, peaches, soybeans. Stinks like burnt cilantro on contact.

Read the file→
On File
A water strider (Gerris remigis), elongated dark body with long legs creating dimples on the water surface tension.
Curious
Six Legs77
Alias
Gerris remigis

Water Strider

Walks on water. Each leg has millions of waterproof hairs. The marine cousin lives on the open ocean.

Read the file→
On File
A wheel bug (Arilus cristatus), gray-brown body with a distinctive half-gear-shaped crest on the thorax and curved rostrum.
Curious
Six Legs79
Alias
Arilus cristatus

Wheel Bug

Wears half a gear-wheel on her back. Bite hurts worse than most snakes. Liquefies caterpillars.

Read the file→
On File
A water boatman (Corixa punctata), oval streamlined dark grayish-brown aquatic bug with fringed oar-like hind legs adapted for swimming, six legs, side profile underwater.
Beneficial
Six Legs75
Alias
Corixa punctata

Water Boatman

LOUDEST animal on Earth scaled to body size. 99 dB underwater calls. Calls made by rubbing PENIS against abdomen.

Read the file→
On File
California red scale (Aonidiella aurantii) on a citrus leaf surface, small round reddish-brown waxy scale-armor disks covering the leaf, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs82
Alias
Aonidiella aurantii

California Red Scale

Most damaging scale insect pest of CITRUS worldwide. Foundational AUGMENTATIVE biocontrol case study.

Read the file→
On File
Hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae) colonies, dense white wooly waxy masses on the underside of hemlock branches at the base of needle attachments looking like tiny tufts of cotton wool, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs85
Alias
Adelges tsugae

Hemlock Woolly Adelgid

Catastrophic forest pest. Has killed essentially ALL mature eastern hemlocks across Appalachia.

Read the file→
On File
Pink hibiscus mealybug (Maconellicoccus hirsutus) colonies, dense white cottony masses on the underside of hibiscus leaves and along stems, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs81
Alias
Maconellicoccus hirsutus

Pink Hibiscus Mealybug

Major invasive Caribbean pest. Attacks 200+ plant species. Foundational classical biocontrol case study.

Read the file→
On File
A cotton stainer (Dysdercus suturellus), bright red head and pronotum with yellow abdomen and bold black markings along the wing margins, six legs, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs81
Alias
Dysdercus suturellus

Cotton Stainer

Bright red-and-yellow cotton pest. STAINS cotton fibers yellow-and-red — major southeastern US cotton damage.

Read the file→
On File
A glassy-winged sharpshooter (Homalodisca vitripennis), large dark brown leafhopper with clear-to-white glassy wings and prominent dark veins, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs84
Alias
Homalodisca vitripennis

Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter

Vector of PIERCE'S DISEASE in California vineyards. Threatens $58B CA wine industry. Killed Italian olive trees.

Read the file→
On File
A greenhouse whitefly (Trialeurodes vaporariorum), tiny pale yellow insect with clear wings covered in white pollen-like waxy powder, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs80
Alias
Trialeurodes vaporariorum

Greenhouse Whitefly

Most damaging pest of GREENHOUSE production worldwide. First-ever commercially mass-reared biocontrol target.

Read the file→
On File
A spined soldier bug (Podisus maculiventris), gray-brown to tan-yellow shield-shaped stink bug with pointed shoulder spines on the pronotum, six legs, top view.
Beneficial
Six Legs78
Alias
Podisus maculiventris

Spined Soldier Bug

PREDATORY stink bug. Eats caterpillars and beetle larvae. Commercially reared as biocontrol agent.

Read the file→
On File
A brown planthopper (Nilaparvata lugens), small brown-tan planthopper with short wings, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs82
Alias
Nilaparvata lugens

Brown Planthopper

Major rice pest of Asia. Causes 'HOPPERBURN' — entire fields die in days when populations explode.

Read the file→
On File
A cotton aphid (Aphis gossypii), small pear-shaped color-polymorphic yellow-green to dark green aphid with long legs and two cornicles, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs77
Alias
Aphis gossypii

Cotton Aphid

Major cotton and melon pest. Attacks 700+ plant species. Foundational case study in pesticide resistance evolution.

Read the file→
On File
A green peach aphid (Myzus persicae), small pear-shaped pale yellow-green to pink soft-bodied sap-sucking insect with long legs and two cornicles, six legs, side profile.
Outlaw
Six Legs83
Alias
Myzus persicae

Green Peach Aphid

Most economically damaging APHID in the world. Attacks 875+ plant species. Transmits 100+ plant viruses.

Read the file→
On File
A buffalo treehopper (Stictocephala bisonia), bright leaf-green small treehopper with dramatic triangular horn-like pronotum projection, six legs, side profile.
Curious
Six Legs81
Alias
Stictocephala bisonia

Buffalo Treehopper

Bright green treehopper with a dramatic TRIANGULAR HORN that makes it look like a miniature bison.

Read the file→
On File
A western conifer seed bug (Leptoglossus occidentalis), narrow brown-and-tan bug with distinctive flattened leaf-like expansions on the hind tibiae, six legs, side profile.
Curious
Six Legs75
Alias
Leptoglossus occidentalis

Western Conifer Seed Bug

The flying-leaf bug that invades your house in autumn. Foul defensive odor. LEAF-LIKE expansions on hind legs.

Read the file→
On File
A manna cicada (Cicada orni), stout-bodied gray-and-brown cicada with broad head, large compound eyes, and translucent wings folded over the back.
Curious
Six Legs72
Alias
Cicada orni

Manna Cicada

The cicada of Mediterranean antiquity. Plato wrote about her chorus. Sap source of historical 'manna.'

Read the file→
On File
A firebug (Pyrrhocoris apterus), bright red elytra with bold black spots and bands, six legs, on a tree base.
Curious
Six Legs77
Alias
Pyrrhocoris apterus

Firebug

Bright red-and-black aggregating bug. Discovery of juvenile hormone traces to her in 1966.

Read the file→
On File
A lantern bug (Pyrops candelaria), large insect with dramatic upturned hollow snout projecting from the head and wings patterned in iridescent green-yellow-red bands.
Curious
Six Legs81
Alias
Pyrops candelaria

Lantern Bug

Carries a hollow snout projection. Maria Sibylla Merian's 1701 'glowing lantern' myth still persists.

Read the file→
On File
A backswimmer (Notonecta glauca), boat-shaped body with silvery underside facing up and dramatically elongated oar-like hind legs, in upside-down resting posture at water surface.
Curious
Six Legs82
Alias
Notonecta glauca

Common Backswimmer

Only insect that swims UPSIDE DOWN. Bite hurts like a bee sting. Eats mosquito larvae and tadpoles.

Read the file→
On File
A water scorpion (Nepa cinerea), flat brown leaf-shaped body with raptorial front pincer legs and a long thin siphon tube extending from the rear, six legs total.
Curious
Six Legs81
Alias
Nepa cinerea

Water Scorpion

True bug that mimics a scorpion. Long tail is a snorkel. Hunts tadpoles with raptorial front legs.

Read the file→
On File
Cochineal insects (Dactylopius coccus) on a prickly pear cactus pad, small dark red-brown bodies covered in white waxy secretions in clusters.
Beneficial
Six Legs85
Alias
Dactylopius coccus

Cochineal Insect

Source of carmine red dye for 2,000+ years. Aztec second-most-valuable trade after gold. In your lipstick.

Read the file→
On File
A cottony cushion scale (Icerya purchasi), small dark red-brown scale insect with distinctive fluted white waxy egg sac protruding from the rear, on a green citrus stem.
Curious
Six Legs85
Alias
Icerya purchasi

Cottony Cushion Scale

Almost destroyed California citrus in 1888. Saved by 130 imported Australian ladybeetles. Founded biocontrol.

Read the file→
On File
A boxelder bug (Boisea trivittata), dark gray-black body with bright red marginal stripes and red abdomen, six legs, dorsal view.
Outlaw
Six Legs73
Alias
Boisea trivittata

Boxelder Bug

Forms autumn aggregations of thousands on south-facing walls. Same red-and-black mimicry as milkweed bug.

Read the file→
On File
A large milkweed bug (Oncopeltus fasciatus), bright red-and-black aposematic body with elongated wings folded back, six legs, side profile.
Curious
Six Legs74
Alias
Oncopeltus fasciatus

Large Milkweed Bug

Eats only milkweed. Sequesters toxin. Wears warning red-and-black. Major model organism.

Read the file→
On File
A squash bug (Anasa tristis), flattened gray-brown body with elongated antennae, six legs, on a green squash leaf.
Outlaw
Six Legs71
Alias
Anasa tristis

Squash Bug

Dominant pest of squash and pumpkins. Vector of cucurbit yellow vine disease.

Read the file→
On File
A dog-day cicada (Neotibicen canicularis), stout-bodied green-and-black insect with broad head, large compound eyes, and translucent wings.
Curious
Six Legs72
Alias
Neotibicen canicularis

Dog-Day Cicada

The high-whine of August 'dog days.' One of the loudest insects on Earth — 100+ dB.

Read the file→
On File
A Brazilian treehopper (Bocydium globulare), small dark green-brown body with three pairs of stalked black globular structures arranged like alien antennae over the head.
Curious
Six Legs83
Alias
Bocydium globulare

Brazilian Treehopper

Wears alien-helicopter rotors on her head. Function still unknown. The most bizarre insect ornament in the world.

Read the file→
On File
A glassy-winged sharpshooter leafhopper (Homalodisca vitripennis), elongated dark brown body with mottled white markings and translucent wings.
Outlaw
Six Legs82
Alias
Homalodisca vitripennis

Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter

Vector of Pierce's disease — wiped out California vineyards. Has gear teeth in her legs to jump.

Read the file→
On File
A pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum), small pale green pear-shaped body with long thin antennae and legs, on a green stem.
Outlaw
Six Legs85
Alias
Acyrthosiphon pisum

Pea Aphid

Female gives live birth to clones already pregnant with their own clones. Photosynthesizes. Trillions of her.

Read the file→
On File
A meadow spittlebug nymph (Philaenus spumarius), small green nymph hidden inside a frothy white foam mass on a green stem.
Outlaw
Six Legs87
Alias
Philaenus spumarius

Meadow Spittlebug

Lives in a froth-bubble of her own waste. Adults jump at 400g — highest acceleration of any animal. Olive disease vector.

Read the file→