Boxelder Bugs

[InvertsandOi]

Today is the first really warm day of the year here in Michigan and my wife noticed these guys outside. I get a lot of them around (and in during the winter) my house. Boxelder Bugs (Boisea trivittata). I'm curious if there is ever any interest in them in the hobby. They're pretty cool looking and easy to handle. My son and I have fun finding them in the house throughout the winter. A normal person would consider it a mild infestation, but they don't cause damage and can't reproduce in the house so I just consider them house guests. From what I understand they're specific diet and life cycle would probably be a little too challenging for such a commonly found bug. Thought I'd ask anyway, and share my fun little find of the day.

 

[Hisserdude]

They are pretty cool, you would need to catch a bunch in order to breed them successfully though.

They can adapt to eating raw sunflower and pumpkin seeds in captivity, though when switching from boxelder seeds to these foreign foods, you will see some of them will die off. That is why you should catch a bunch, to make up for the die off.

They like a lot of ventilation, and will lay eggs under bark. Overall they are pretty easy to breed, the hardest part is getting them to adjust to the new food items. The nice thing is you can get a bunch of sunflower seeds in bulk for very little money, and they will last the boxelder bugs a LONG time.

Hope this helps!

 

[InvertsandOi]

They are pretty cool, you would need to catch a bunch in order to breed them successfully though.

They can adapt to eating raw sunflower and pumpkin seeds in captivity, though when switching from boxelder seeds to these foreign foods, you will see some of them will die off. That is why you should catch a bunch, to make up for the die off.

They like a lot of ventilation, and will lay eggs under bark. Overall they are pretty easy to breed, the hardest part is getting them to adjust to the new food items. The nice thing is you can get a bunch of sunflower seeds in bulk for very little money, and they will last the boxelder bugs a LONG time.

Hope this helps!

That's very interesting, thank you!

I could easily collect at least fifty of them right now if I wanted to. There are way more out there than are in the picture. I'm not going to because I already get to see and play with them all the time, plus I already have a couple other invert projects in the works. Maybe next year. Do the sunflower seeds have to be without the shell? Also, I read somewhere that the larva eat green leaves. Is that true?

 

[Hisserdude]

That's very interesting, thank you!

I could easily collect at least fifty of them right now if I wanted to. There are way more out there than are in the picture. I'm not going to because I already get to see and play with them all the time, plus I already have a couple other invert projects in the works. Maybe next year. Do the sunflower seeds have to be without the shell? Also, I read somewhere that the larva eat green leaves. Is that true?

Yeah, they seem common over there, not like you won't ever see any again lol!

Yeah they should be shelled, as in no shells. The boxelder bugs have a hard time getting through the shell. Boxelder bugs don't have larva, only nymphs, and as far as I know they don't eat leaves. Pretty sure they only eat seeds from various plants.

 

[InvertsandOi]

Yeah, they seem common over there, not like you won't ever see any again lol!

Yeah they should be shelled, as in no shells. The boxelder bugs have a hard time getting through the shell. Boxelder bugs don't have larva, only nymphs, and as far as I know they don't eat leaves. Pretty sure they only eat seeds from various plants.

Seems that google has misinformed me. I'm shocked, haha. That makes me wonder if they actually ARE reproducing in my walls. They did seem to be a lot more numerous this year than in the past..

 

[InvertsandOi]

Actually, I don't store seeds in my walls so I guess that makes no sense, lol! I's hard for nymphs to grow without food. I'm sure it's just adults wintering in my house.

 

[The Snark]

I'm wondering if these would follow the rule of Lepidoptera. That the food source the adult thrives on cannot be the same as what the larvae eats. But there are variations to that rule.

 

[Introvertebrate]

Would they serve as feeders?

 

[InvertsandOi]

Would they serve as feeders?

Good question. According to Wikipedia they emit an unappetizing odor. However, as previously stated, misinformation via google searches about these guys seems pretty easy to come by. I've pissed off dozens of them letting my toddler play with them and I've never noticed any smell. I would assume the bright coloration is some kind of warning, but I really don't know.

 

[Aquarimax]

As a child, I would play with them a lot, and unfortunately, I was sometimes a little too enthusiastic. sometimes they would exude a yellowish fluid from their joints (haemolymph?)
I seem to remember that it had an odor, but I have learned to be gentler and haven't seen it in a long time, I could easily be remembering wrong.

 

[The Snark]

My wife just mentioned bugs here identical to these also have an odor that is effective against little kids playing with them.

 

[InvertsandOi]

Hmmm, guess I just never noticed it.

 

[pannaking22]

I'm wondering if these would follow the rule of Lepidoptera. That the food source the adult thrives on cannot be the same as what the larvae eats. But there are variations to that rule.

Hemiptera don't follow the rule as much, especially the plant feeding species. While it's probably better to spread out and not have everyone eating the same thing, many species have no problem with it unless they reach truly staggering numbers on a plant (usually doesn't happen since adults can fly away).

Good question. According to Wikipedia they emit an unappetizing odor. However, as previously stated, misinformation via google searches about these guys seems pretty easy to come by. I've pissed off dozens of them letting my toddler play with them and I've never noticed any smell. I would assume the bright coloration is some kind of warning, but I really don't know.

You've really got to work them up to get them to do anything. I've never noticed an odor unless squished, but I wouldn't recommend putting them in your mouth if you piss them off enough to make them reflex bleed (the yellowish fluid Aquarimax mentioned).