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Wheel Bug

The wheel bug eating a piece of banana.

 

I found a wheel bug on my porch steps, so I moved it over to the railing just to see what it would do. It walked around near the praying mantis (in the other photo) and then it found the banana. Neither bug seemed to pay any attention to the other being near by.

 

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The wheel bug (Arilus cristatus), in the family Reduviidae, is one of the largest terrestrial true bugs in North America, being up to 1.5 inches, or 38 mm, in length; it is the only member of its genus.

 

The bite of a wheel bug is painful and may take months to heal (sometimes leaving a small scar), so caution is highly advised when handling them. The reproductive cycle of the wheel bug initiates in autumn - now!

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Uploaded on November 6, 2011
Taken on November 6, 2011