Assassin bug

Assassin bug
Temporal range: Upper Cretaceous–Recent
Assassin bug (Rhynocoris iracundus) with bee prey
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Infraorder: Cimicomorpha
Family: Reduviidae
Latreille, 1807

Assassin bugs are the Reduviidae. They are a large cosmopolitan family of "true bugs" or Hemiptera.

They are almost all terrestrial ambush predators.

Most members of the family are easy to recognise: they have a relatively narrow neck, sturdy build and formidable curved proboscis. Large specimens should be handled with care, if at all, because they may defend themselves with a very painful stab from the proboscis.

Rhynocoris - Predacious flower assassin bug from South Africa. May bite when carelessly handled; painful after-effects often last for months.
Assassin bug camouflaged with debris, Australia.

References

  1. ↑ There are some blood-sucking ectoparasites in the subfamily Triatominae.
  2. ↑ Weaving, Alan; Picker, Mike; Griffiths, Charles Llewellyn (2003). Field Guide to Insects of South Africa. New Holland Publishers, Ltd. ISBN 1-86872-713-0.