When it comes to dealing with one’s most powerful enemies, assassination has always been one of the go-tos. From the ronin (AKA: ninja) of feudal Japan to modern spec ops military teams, stealth and lightning fast strikes are hallmarks of assassins everywhere, as is a high price if you fail to pay them for their services.
So what if we told you you could hire an assassin (legally) that specializes in pest control and won’t charge money? The assassin bug is just that: a valuable ally that can also be your worst enemy if you take their services for granted.
Today, we’ll look at how to get rid of these bugs when the price gets too high, as well as how to make them avoid your property in future. After, we’ll share some valuable intel about these skilled hunters so you can identify them and determine whether or not they’re worth employing.
Getting Rid of Assassin Bugs
While assassin bugs are generally welcome additions to your garden (and are sometimes even kept as pets), the subfamily Triatominae is quite the nuisance and should be disposed of when spotted on your property.
See Also: How to Get Rid of Boxelder Bugs
Insecticides
Being true bugs, insecticides can be quite effective against these critters. Of course, any type of pesticide is notoriously indiscriminate in what it harms, so be warned you could kill all sorts of beneficial critters or expose your family to toxins when spraying.
That said, bifenthrins (Talak 7.9%), cypermethrins (Demon WP), and lambda-cyhalothrins (Demand CS) all tend to be very effective, and very few species have shown resistance so far. The good thing about any of these products is that they are broad-spectrum insecticides and work for a large number of pests you may encounter.
Neem oil may also be an effective natural solution, although its effect on assassin bugs has not been sufficiently researched. Indoors, contact sprays may be the best option, due to the way assassin bugs feed.
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Diatomaceous Earth (DE)
Food-grade diatomaceous earth is one of our favorite natural pest killers. While you don’t want to breathe a bunch of it in, DT is perfectly safe around people and pets.
To us, it’s a fine dust, but it’s actually made from the crushed fossil remains of microscopic diatoms. At the insect scale, that same dust becomes a minefield of sharp debris similar to broken glass.
When the assassin bug (or any other insect or arachnid) walks over it, the sharp surfaces lacerate the waxy coating that seals moisture into the victim’s exoskeleton. As a result, moisture bleeds out and the victim dies of dehydration a day or two later.
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Traps
Sticky traps can work a treat on assassin bugs that get into your home or garage. Simply put them along baseboards where bugs are most likely to scurry and make sure kids and pets can’t get tangled up in them.
A nice bonus to using these traps is that they’ll not only capture assassin bugs (and their prey), but even mice can get stuck in the extra-sticky glue.
Natural Predators
While assassin bugs are tough and can pack a punch, that doesn’t stop insectivores from going after them. Birds, rodents, frogs, and other bug lovers can be invited to the property to feed on any unwanted assassin bug species.
Just be warned that this remedy is always a two-edged sword, as natural predators can become pests in their own right.
Assassin Bug Prevention
It can be difficult to keep these critters away due to their tiny size, but it’s not impossible. The following prevention methods tend to work against most insect pests, not just assassin bugs.
Keep it Clean
First and foremost, keep your home and yard clean. Remove any debris, clean up any food or drink spills promptly, and make sure grass and bushes are kept trimmed. Bugs love having places to hide, so assassin bugs will look for those places when searching for prey.
Identify and Remove Other Infestations
Keep in mind that while most assassin bugs target insects, kissing bugs go after mammals. As a result, you’ll not only want to identify and eliminate bug infestations, but also rodents and other larger critters that may have invaded your home or yard.
Use Exclusionary Practices
Not only do exclusionary tactics protect your home from pests, it also protects your home from high heating and A/C bills. You should inspect your home at least every three years (every six months in the spring and autumn is ideal, though) for potential breeches. Seal all cracks and holes you find, no matter how small.
Ensure the caulking around windows and doors is intact and replace any damaged screens. Place copper mesh or other exclusion barriers over vent openings. Look for places where pipes and wires enter the home and caulk over any gaps.
Create a Dead Zone
Remove all vegetation six inches out from around your foundation, including trimming back shrubs. Use fine gravel to prevent tunneling. Residual barrier sprays (Ortho Home Defense is a good one) and the higher visibility for predators will do the rest.
Change Your Lighting Habits
Finally, avoid leaving outdoor lights on when not needed, as these can attract all manner of insects (and thus insect hunters such as assassin bugs).
For porch lights or other external lighting that may need to be kept on sometimes, try switching to a yellow light. Yellow is outside of the visible spectrum for a wide range of insects, so they won’t even realize the light’s on.
Complimentary Gardening
You don’t need a garden to take advantage of complimentary gardening. Also known as companion planting, this is the practice of creating natural barriers to protect vulnerable plants by using plants that repel pests.
Garlic, marigolds, mint (especially peppermint), basil, rosemary, and a number of other wonderful plants produce strong scents that either overpower scent trails or are simply too strong for pests to hang around.
Plant these around the perimeter of your property and in your garden to repel bugs that the assassins might target. In exchange, you’ll get some beautiful flowers or tasty fresh kitchen herbs.
See Also: Does Peppermint Repel Wasps and Yellow Jackets?
Getting to Know Assassin Bugs
With over 7,000 identified species (and counting), it’s impossible to give an easy description of these Hemiptera (true bugs). That said, they do share a number of traits that make it easier to spot one in a crowd.
Identifying Assassin Bugs
These little hunters range from .5 to 1.5 inches long so they can be a little difficult to spot unless you’re looking. Most species have an elongated head with narrow neck and a multi-part rostrum (a beak-like mouthpart used for feeding). They tend to be brightly colored with reds and oranges to darker browns and black.
The rostrum can be tucked into a ridged groove in their prosternum (the bottom front portion of the thorax). By stridulating, or rubbing, the rostrum along these ridges, the assassin bug can make sounds to scare away predators or communicate.
What Do Assassin Bugs Eat?
These little critters feed on a wide range of insects, often much larger in size, using a manner similar to spiders. Their long, sharp rostrum is used to stab the victim and inject a dissolving saliva which liquifies the victims innards. It then sucks these juices back out through the rostrum.
Despite their coloration, assassin bugs are masters of camouflage, blending into flowers and some even using dust to become invisible to their target. They’re also agile enough that they can catch bees and wasps. Ants are another popular prey.
Do Assassin Bugs Bite or Sting?
While they’d rather avoid humans and pets, an assassin bug will stab potential predators with its rostrum if threatened. The puncture is quite painful, but most species pose no actual threat and aren’t known to transmit diseases through their bite.
Note the word “most”, as we’ll be coming back to that in a moment.
Related: What Bit Me? (Identifying Bug Bites)
Are Assassin Bugs Beneficial?
For the most part, assassin bugs are valuable allies against a wide range of pests. Some species prefer specific prey, and most are harmless to humans. In fact, not only are they great allies against ants, roaches, and other common pests, they’re sometimes kept as pets.
An Exception: The Infamous Kissing Bug
While assassin bugs tend to be beneficial and harmless to humans and pets, the subfamily Triatominae is notoriously different. Its 138 species are mostly bloodsuckers and have earned the nickname “kissing bug” because they’re drawn to the mouths of their victims by exhaled carbon dioxide.
These pests are a key vector for Chagas disease, caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. Unlike mosquitoes and similar bloodsuckers, the parasite is spread through feces or traces of human blood on the rostrum, not through the bug’s saliva.
This nasty disease has visible symptoms such as swollen lymph nodes, swelling around the bite wound, and fever, only for symptoms in untreated individuals to seemingly disappear after one to two months.
However, the true horror of the disease appears 10 to 30 years later, with 45 percent of victims developing heart disease, 21 percent developing enlargement of digestive organs, and 10 percent suffering nerve damage. Approximately 12,000 people die of the disease every year.
Suffice it to say, kissing bugs should be dealt with ASAP and with no mercy.
Morgan is a certified entomologist and pest control consultant and a member of the National Pest Management Association.
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