In late March to early April, adults leave their overwintering sites to return to their host trees for the warmer months. When crushed or handled roughly, boxelder bugs may leave a reddish orange stain from their fecal material that can result in discoloration of curtains, drapes, clothing, etc. With the holiday season upon us, the National Pest Management Association NPMA is educating homeowners about certain insects that can infest and contaminate food in pantries. Pantry pests like Indian meal moths and merchant grain beetles can become difficult to control once they get inside.
Advanced Search International Search. Boxelder Bugs Boisea trivittata Say. What Is A Boxelder Bug? Boxelder Bugs Identification.
Color Black with reddish or orange markings on dorsum. Legs 6. Shape Elongate-oval, somewhat flattened with head narrower than pronotum. Antennae Yes. Region All. Signs of an Infestation Boxelder bugs generally become a problem when they invade homes, sheds and garages in the fall and when they emerge in the spring.
As winter approaches, boxelder bugs seek out shelter from the cold. They can fly up to two miles to find a suitable location in tree stumps, under debris, or within homes. There they remain mostly inactive until the early spring when temperatures begin to rise.
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Through its county agents, the Cooperative Extension Service gives individuals access to the resources at land-grant universities across the nation.
These universities are centers for research in many subjects, including entomology the study of insects and agriculture. Each county within the United States has an Extension office, which is staffed with agents who work closely with university-based Extension specialists to deliver answers to your questions about gardening, agriculture, and pest control. You can find the phone number for your local county extension office in the local government section often marked with blue pages of your telephone directory or by clicking on the map below.
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Control tips: Boxelder bugs can sometimes be confused with other similar looking insects. Boxelder bugs start to leave the trees where they were feeding to find protected areas for the winter. Adult boxelder bugs can fly several blocks, and may travel as far as two miles. Although nymphs may be present in the fall, only fully grown adults survive the winter.
Once there, they move towards windows and other sunny areas. However, warmth may not reach all of the insects and they do not all become active at the same time. By spring, all the surviving boxelder bugs that overwintered inside buildings become active.
They try to move outdoors but many remain trapped inside. They do not reproduce in homes. All the boxelder bugs seen inside during winter and spring entered buildings the previous fall. The best way to manage boxelder bugs is prevention—keep them from entering your home from the start. This is done by sealing possible entry points around the home so they are unable to enter plus using an insecticide at the right time. Once boxelder bugs are found inside the best option is to remove them with a vacuum or a broom and dust pan.
It is not practical to try to treat wall voids and other hiding places to prevent them from emerging. Since they don't live for very long, insecticides are not recommended once they have emerged into the inside of a home.
Boxelder trees , as well as maple and ash, are common in yards and public spaces and are potential sources of boxelder bugs. The benefits of having these trees in a landscape outweigh the problem of occasional infestations. Spraying with insecticides or removing boxelder trees in your yard is not a good way to manage boxelder bugs.
If large numbers of boxelder bugs are present or you have a history of boxelder bug invasions, you can supplement non-chemical control methods with an insecticide treatment around the outside of your home.
The best time to spray is late summer and early fall when boxelder bugs are first clustering around the outside of buildings. When picking out adult boxelder bugs, besides them being black with red striped, their wings lie flat on their backs to form an X. Additionally, they also have six legs and two antennae. The nymph boxelder bugs are bright red until they reach adulthood when they turn black.
The eggs of a boxelder bug start out yellow, but they will turn red as the nymphs grow inside. This is designed for sucking the juice from the boxelder trees by piercing the outside and using a feeding tube to get the juice out. Because of this, their mouths are capable of piercing your skin; however, they rarely will. However, they are a nuisance. Boxelder bugs can unfortunately leave stains on drapes and carpets from their excrement.
Okay, onto the good stuff… Here are some facts headed your way that you should know about the boxelder bug. Their names give their menu away. These bugs prefer to feed on the leaves, flowers, and seed pods of the female seed-bearing boxelder trees.
They will also be found on maple and sometimes ash trees. They will also feed on grapes. If they do venture onto fruit, the piercing nature of their mouths will sometimes cause the fruit to become deformed or bruised. Boxelder bugs secrete a substance from their body. Unfortunately, that substance that will stain walls, carpets, curtains, and furniture. If their bodies are crushed, this secretion leaves behind a foul odor, similar to that of a stink bug. This foul odor is a defense mechanism because it also tastes bad to potential predators.
There are few animals out there that will risk eating these insects due to the unpleasant taste.
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