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Adult box elder bugs are about 1/2 inch long, slate gray in color, with three red stripes behind the head and red lines on the wings. The rear margin of the wings is reddish, and the abdomen beneath the wings is also red, as are the eyes. Nymphs are very bright red, with darker heads. In late summer...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inThe Atlanta journal-constitution
Main Author Howell, Jim
Format Newspaper Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Atlanta, Ga Atlanta Journal Constitution, LLC 03.02.2006
Subjects
Households
Insects
Pest control
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Summary:Adult box elder bugs are about 1/2 inch long, slate gray in color, with three red stripes behind the head and red lines on the wings. The rear margin of the wings is reddish, and the abdomen beneath the wings is also red, as are the eyes. Nymphs are very bright red, with darker heads. In late summer and fall, large numbers of adult and large nymph box elder bugs come together, usually on the bark of box elder trees, before moving to an overwintering site.They fly or crawl to a suitable retreat for the winter. These insects seek and find almost any crack or crevice --- in walls, door and window casings, rock piles, tree holes and the foundations of houses. Because female box elder trees are the single most important food source for these insects, removal of female trees will greatly reduce the numbers of box elder bugs.
ISSN:1539-7459