True Bugs
True bugs are a type of insect containing both carnivorous bugs and herbivores. Bed bugs are true bugs but so are cicadas and aphids. They are bound together by the presence of perching sucking mouth parts that are similar across the spectrum. These bugs draw vital fluids from plants and animals and in the case of carnivorous true bugs like bed bugs, they can pass on blood born diseases from one person to another. Herbivores and insects with these facial implements are prone to sucking out liquid chlorophyll from plants and trees. Box elder bugs are of this variety
Box elder bug life cycle
Box elder bugs are frustrating insects in the fall when winter is coming but that is not their only period of reproduction. They also reproduce in the early spring where you will not notice them at all. They will suck on the liquid chlorophyll of trees either in forests or even on your property and be all but invisible. If you want to know if they are on your property and if you should treat your trees for them look for their eggs. They will be tiny bumps on the leaves of your trees that blend in with the colour of the leaves themselves. This is the best way to tell you to have box elder bugs on your property and is also a good time to get your home treated for the coming fall.
Box elder bugs nesting
Box elder bugs nest in the same trees they drink from but will also nest in piles of leaves, they can lay eggs on leaves which look like small bumps on the leaves that are the same colour as the leaves themselves but can also create hives similar to bumble bees out of wood shavings. These hives are hexagonal as well. They will place eggs in the openings and those eggs inflate as the insect grows. They fill the space and change colour over time before hatching.
Box elder bugs over-wintering
During the second mating season of the year the box elder bugs must do something called over-wintering in order to survive to the spring so they can begin the first mating stage over again. These are the babies that hatched from the first season and will not involve any of the adults from the season before. The bugs used to use their wings to fly south for the winter to a warmer climate a few miles away but have now found a much more local place to over-winter. Your house. They will attach themselves to the outer walls and enter the home through cracks and crevices like through window frames and under doors. They make a terrible smell when they are threatened and when they are crushed and their innards will stain upholstery of any colour other than red.
Box elder bugs treatment
If you have this situation happening to your home every year you can resolve it with a pest control technician. They can do an exterior spray of your home in the spring which will kill the bugs as they come to attach themselves to the exterior and will stop them from getting inside. If they are already inside a treatment on the interior can be done to kill them there as well. When cleaning them up be sure to vacuum them, not sweep as that will break them and cause the red-staining innards to ruin your floors and walls.
