Posts Tagged: Reduviidae

Assassins in the Tidy Tips

If you see a patch of California native wildflowers known as "Tidy Tips,"  look closely. The yellow daisylike flower with white petals (Layia platyglossa) may yield a surprise visitor. You may see an assassin. An assassin bug. A member of the family...

Patch of Tidy Tips

PATCH OF TIDY TIPS, California native wildflower, planted on the UC Davis campus, behind the Laboratory Sciences Building. If you look closely in the patch, you'll see scores of insects, including honey bees, hover flies, mason bees, ladybugs--and assassin bugs. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Assassin Bug

ASSASSIN BUG, from the genus Zelus and family Reduviidae, waits for prey. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Sip of Nectar

ASSASSIN BUG appears to be sipping nectar from a tidy tip blossom for a quick burst of energy. It preys on small insects, such as aphids, crickets and leafhoppers. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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