Harlequin Bug (Murgantia histrionica)

Order: Hemiptera (he-MIP-ter-a) (Info) Family: Pentatomidae (pen-ta-TOM-id-ee) (Info) Genus: Murgantia Species: histrionica (his-tree-OH-nee-ka) (Info) Profile: No positives 3 neutrals 7 negatives Regional... This bug has been reportedly found in the following regions: Deer, Arkansas Jonesboro, Arkansas Cypress, California Lake Forest, California Newport Beach, California Augusta, Georgia Lincolnville, Maine Millersville, Maryland Stevensville, Maryland Brockton, Massachusetts Marshfield, Missouri Blackwood, New Jersey Bridgeton, New Jersey Mount Laurel, New Jersey Arverne, New York Greensboro, North Carolina Glenville, Pennsylvania Norristown, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Wallingford, Pennsylvania Nashville, Tennessee Austin, Texas Brandy Station, Virginia Vienna, Virginia Member Notes: Rating Author Comment Negative dayli On Aug 25, 2006, dayli from Vienna, VA (Zone 7a) wrote: Identified by the county ag. program. Beautiful black and red-orange bug--lays small black and white eggs in two rows a dozen or so at a time on the underside of cleome leaf--abslolutely devastates cleome! Neutral calicorkication On Oct 13, 2006, calicorkication from Jonesboro, AR wrote: I have several of these bugs (nymphs and adults) plus eggs all over my mustard and collard greens. I kill them by hand but it does not deter them. I have read about gardeners using pyrethrum plants as a companion plant to deter/repel these bugs but I have not tried this approach yet. I will try next spring and report back. Negative SandyRN On Oct 14, 2006, SandyRN from Blackwood, NJ (Zone 7a) wrote: Sucked the life out of my cleome, beginning in August. They were prolific and very aggravating. Negative Farmerdill On Oct 18, 2006, Farmerdill from Augusta, GA (Zone 8a) wrote: These are very destructive on Brassica's. They can shred the plants in no time. Damage is most apparent on broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and collards, but they can be quite damaging to the rest of the family as well. Negative croclover On Mar 9, 2007, croclover from Lake Forest, CA (Zone 10a) wrote: These little guys are...dare I say...intelligent? They're hard to kill by hand because they can see you, and have this way of walking sideways to dodge you! They ate my Zinnias. Negative dbh369 On Jan 14, 2008, dbh369 from Norristown, PA wrote: This bug sucks! Literally. For three years, I've tried to grow kale, broccoli, and/or Brussel sprouts, and these little devils, while beautiful, have destroyed them. I've uploaded a picture with damage for your edification. Most organic controls they have laughed at (will try row covers this year) and even some 'inorganic' ones! Sevin claims to control, my bugs laughed at it. BTW, they are also stink bugs. I've also heard that you can plant 'bait crops' to attract them, then cover with straw and burn early in the season to knock 'em down. Also, they do not hibernate, so cleaning the garden well between seasons and burning refuse will help... Neutral Tyrex On Feb 15, 2008, Tyrex from Melbourne () wrote: This bug has given me a lot of grief in the vege patch, but this year I tried spraying them with a fairly strong solution of water and dishwashing liquid. It kills them in minutes but you have to go out and spray for a few days or even weeks to break the breeding cycle as they have four breeding cycles a year. first thing in the morning is the best time as they like to sunbake. Plus the solution will only kill what you hit with it, keeping the beneficial insect population intact and its harmless to your vegetables. Negative SMB49 On May 26, 2008, SMB49 from Cypress, CA wrote: I have these bugs all over my alyssum's, they are sucking the life out of them. The guy at the nursery identified them for me and said to use Bayer Advanced Rose & Flower insect killer - hoping that works!! Neutral Sunshine183 On Jun 5, 2008, Sunshine183 from Lincolnville, ME (Zone 5a) wrote: I saw this bug for the first time yesterday. I had no idea what it was so I was researching and found a picture of it on this site. They had apparantly just hatched out. I'm assuming that it is new to this area since I had never seen it before. I showed them to some other people and none of them knew what it was either. Thanks to this website I now know what it is. Negative mlov36 On Jul 20, 2008, mlov36 from Stevensville, MD (Zone 7a) wrote: These bugs seem to attack my brassicas every other year in huge numbers. They only sure way I have found to defeat them is take away what they like to eat. In my USDA zone 7 am able to plant a winter garden with the help of Remay and TLC. They won't stick around for cold weather, but the brassicas love it.

By dayli By dayli By Magpye By Magpye By Magpye By linda_nc By linda_nc There are a total of 14 photos. Click here to view them all!