Insidious Flower Bug (Nymph)

Natural Habitat

Gardens, agricultural fields, meadows, and areas with flowering plants.

Diet & Feeding

Omnivorous; primarily feeds on small insects like thrips, mites, aphids, and insect eggs, but occupies plants for pollen and nectar.

Behavior Patterns

Active hunters that use piercing-sucking mouthparts to drain prey. They undergo incomplete metamorphosis; nymphs resemble adults but lack wings. Known for occasionally biting humans if they land on skin.

Risks & Benefits

Highly beneficial to the ecosystem and farmers as a biological control agent for crop pests. Risks include a sharp, disproportionately painful 'pinch' or bite to humans, though they do not transmit diseases or feed on blood.

Identified on: 4/29/2026