Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
 

Register · Log In
HomeGuideID RequestRecentFrassForumsDonateHelp
Clickable Guide
Moths Butterflies Flies Caterpillars Flies Dragonflies Flies Mantids Cockroaches Bees and Wasps Walkingsticks Earwigs Ants Termites Hoppers and Kin Hoppers and Kin Beetles True Bugs Fleas Grasshoppers and Kin Ticks Spiders Scorpions Centipedes Millipedes

Calendar
BugGuide Gathering
Smoky Mountains
University of Tennessee Biological Field Station
August 8-10, 2008
 
Photos from the gathering
 
Photos from the 2007 gathering in Minnesota

TaxonomyBrowse
Info
ImagesLinksBooksData
Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Insects (Insecta) » True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies (Hemiptera) » True Bugs (Heteroptera) » Assassin Bugs (Reduviidae) » Rhiginia » Scarlet-bordered Assassin Bug (Rhiginia cruciata)

Species Rhiginia cruciata - Scarlet-bordered Assassin Bug

Classification · Other Common Names · Size · Identification · Range · Habitat · Season · Food · Life Cycle · See Also · Print References · Internet References · Works Cited
Colorful Assassin - Rhiginia cruciata Assassin Bug - Rhiginia cruciata Assassin Bug - Rhiginia cruciata Bug - Rhiginia cruciata Red&Black - Rhiginia cruciata Seed Bug or Plant Bug? How do you differentiate? - Rhiginia cruciata Illinois data point - Rhiginia cruciata Black and Red Beware - Rhiginia cruciata
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)
Genus Rhiginia
Species cruciata (Scarlet-bordered Assassin Bug)
Other Common Names
Cruciate Assassin Bug
Size
12-16 mm
Identification
Medium-sized assassin bug, resembles Bee Assassin, Apiomerus, but has more uniform bright red border.
Range
Southeastern United States: New Jersey, south to Florida, west to Illinois, Texas.
Habitat
Forests?
Season
Fall and spring. Brimley, p. 73, (1) lists as October-April for North Carolina.
Food
Predatory
Life Cycle
Brimley, p. 73, (1) says hibernates under logs. Other sources say this bug is nocturnal. Perhaps adults seen out in the open in spring (May in North Carolina, West Virginia) are in search of a mate, as appears to be true for Melanolestes. Males reported to come to lights in spring.
See Also
Apiomerus.
Print References
Brimley, p. 73 (1)
Slater, pp. 128-129, fig. 238 (2)
Taber, p. 81, fig. 69, discusses life history of closely related R. cinctiventris. (3)
Internet References
Rhiginia sp. from Texas--probably R. cruciata
R. cruciata--Oklahoma Biological Survey
Reduviidae of Florida--fig. 2
North Carolina State Entomology Collection lists 55 pinned, including specimens from that state. (This is the only eastern member of the genus.)
Works Cited
1.Insects of North Carolina
By C.S. Brimley
2.How to Know the True Bugs
By Slater, James A., and Baranowski, Richard M.
3.Insects of the Texas Lost Pines (W.L. Moody, Jr., Natural History Series, No. 33)
By Stephen W. Taber, Scott B. Fleenor
Contributed by Cotinis on 9 June, 2004 - 1:25pm
Last updated 13 April, 2005 - 4:40am

Disclaimer: Dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service. We strive to provide accurate information, but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world. If you need expert professional advice, contact your local extension office.

Contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content.
Click the contributor's name for licensing and usage information.
Everything else copyright © 2003-2008 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by Iowa State University Entomology.

Printer Friendly Version 		Terms of Use
Privacy Policy
Site Map
Contact