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Photo#10876
Leaf-legged Bug - Acanthocephala terminalis

Leaf-legged Bug - Acanthocephala terminalis
Payne's Prairie, near Gainesville, Alachua County, Florida, USA
April 15, 1986
These large bugs scared the heck out of us when they buzzed past our ears.

Squash Bug?
You know all this time I thought that there was a difference between squash bugs and leaf-footed plant bugs! I guess I'll be reorganizing some folders.

Acanthocephala species
This is a female (males have swollen hind femora armed with spikes, and/or teeth) Acanthocephala. Florida has more diversity than more northerly climes.

 
A. terminalis, I believe
- connexivum visible from above rules out A. confraterna. Hind tibia shape rules out A. declivis. That just leaves A. femorata, but that doesn't have the contrasting antennal tip.
See UF site.

Moving to guide - see for a very similar one.

 
Control- pestacides ineffective
I have a control for the “leaf-footed bug” we have a small orchid and were plagued with this insecticide resistant insect. We tried seven, malathion, various pepper based safer formulas, nothing worked. We even tried vacuuming them off the Pomegranates, which was very ridiculous indeed. Finally we sewed rectangular bags out of fiberglass screen, about the size of lunch sacs. We covered the young fruit and tied the bags on the stems. Floating the fruit in the center of the stiff screen sac. this effectively stopped them and was an organic solution. It also allowed the pomegranate to ripen well.With out the bacteria injected by this little devils piercing mouth parts. The bags are reusable season after season. If you want to order some from me email. They are quite interesting to look at unless you have loads of them breeding all over your pomegranate harvest!

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