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Species Reduvius personatus - Masked Hunter
Classification Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Hemiptera (True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies)
Suborder Heteroptera (True Bugs)
Family Reduviidae (Assassin Bugs)
Subfamily Reduviinae
Genus Reduvius
Species personatus (Masked Hunter)
Other Common Names Bed Bug Hunter Synonyms and other taxonomic changes Orig. Comb: Cimex personatus Linnaeus, 1758 Explanation of Names personatus - Latin for a face mask; probably refers to the habits of the nymphs which "mask" themselves with debris
MASKED HUNTER: the sticky body surface of the nymph accumulates a coating of dust, lint, sand, etc., which masks the presence of the predatory nymph Size Body length 17-22 mm
Native adults under 15 mm. (Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1964) Identification Adults are uniformly black or sometimes dark brown. Nymphs cover themselves with dust, lint, sand, and other debris which usually matches the color of their immediate surroundings and makes the nymphs difficult to detect.
Adult:
Nymphs:
Note, all species of Reduvius nymphs camouflage themselves with dust and debris, but native (non-personatus) spp. are restricted to the SW. (Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1964) Range Introduced: AZ-FL-ME-WA / BC, ON-QE (1) (Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1964)
This species is common in many areas of the United States, especially in the east and northwest, including the northern Great Basin. We have seen many specimens from the states of Washington, Oregon, Utah, Nevada, and Colorado, and also some from Arizona, but the species is significantly very rare in California, never having been reported in the literature; we have seen only one specimen. (Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1964)
Type Locality: Europe. Now adventitiously cosmopolitan. (Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1964).
Native spp. of Reduvius occur in the sw: southern CA to west TX, rarely UT (see map pg 13 of Wygodzinsky & Usinger, 1964) (1), so dust-covered nymphs in this region (unless they are over 15mm long) may or may not be the common R. personatusHabitat Adults and nymphs are found around buildings and in wooded areas; both are attracted to lights. Season Adults: May through Oct. Nymphs as early as Feb. (BG data) Food Adults and nymphs prey on a variety of small arthropods such as woodlice, lacewings, earwigs, bed bugs ( Cimex spp.), and Swallow Bugs ( Oeciacus vicarius). Remarks Capable of inflicting a painful bite if handled but does not feed on blood, and does not transmit diseases. See Also The Black Corsair (Melanolestes picipes) is more robust, with an enlarged, conspicuously smooth and shiny prothorax, and its forelegs and midlegs have "ankle weights" (modifications of the tibiae that help to hold prey and grip slippery surfaces).
Black Corsair - Melanolestes picipes (Herrich-Schaeffer)
Det. J. C. Abbott, 1996 Print References Ryckman, R.E. 1954. Reduvius senilus Van Duzee from the lodges of Neotoma in San Juan County, Utah (Hemiptera: Reduviidae). Bull. Southern California Acad. Sci., 53(2): 88.
Wood, S.F. 1954. Experimental destruction of the conenose bug, Triatoma, by the assassin bugs, Reduvius personatus and R. senilus (Hemiptera, Reduviidae). Bull. Southern California Acad. Sci., 53(3): 174-176.
Wygodzinsky, P. & R.L. Usinger. 1964. The genus Reduvius Fabricius in Western North America (Reduviidae, Hemiptera, Insecta). American Museum Novitates, 2175: 1-15. Full PDFInternet References overview with photos of adult and nymph (U. of Minnesota)
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