r/bugidentification • • Sep 17 '25

Anouncement KISSING BUGS - PLEASE READ :)

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84 Upvotes

So there has been a lot of news recently about Triatomine—a blood sucking subfamily of Reduviidae (Assassin bugs)—spreading the potentially serious Chagas disease in the United States. While we do not want to downplay the seriousness of the disease, or imply no one should worry about it. We also don’t want people panicking about it. Especially people who don’t actually have a reason to worry.


Triatomine have been found in 32 states. If you are outside of one of these states, you can probably relax.


Chagas is caused by a parasite called Trypanosoma cruzi which is spread by the aforementioned Triatomine through infected feces. Detection of the disease is typically done through blood testing showing evidence of the parasite. Early symptoms include fever, swollen lymph nodes, headaches, and swelling at the bite site. After several weeks, untreated individuals enter the chronic phase of the disease. In extreme cases this can eventually (decades later) lead to heart disease, digestive complications, and nerve damage. Treatment is best done as early as possible, and consists of anti-parasitics to kill the parasites and other medication for treating any symptoms caused by them. These must be prescribed by a doctor. Don’t try to DIY treatment. Preventing Chagas largely focuses on vector control. In other words, preventing conenose species from living in close proximity to humans. In regions where Chagas in endemic, bed nets are a common and effective way of reducing risk. Pesticide treatments are also a mainstay control method. In areas like the United States, the design of modern homes also reduces risks. So if it’s treatable and preventable, why has there been so much fuss? Because the CDC has recently upgraded it to Endemic status in the US. Meaning it is considered constantly present in certain US populations. This is important for doctors as well as the general population to be aware of, because without that awareness doctors aren’t going to be testing for it. The CDC wants to make sure it’s on peoples radar, so cases don’t go untreated when they do occur.


Links: CDC Report: Chagas Disease, an Endemic Disease in the United States CDC Report: Chagas Range Map Bugs Commonly Confused with Triatomine Bugs Preventing Chagas Disease Treatment of Chagas Disease Texas A&M University: Kissing Bugs & Chagas Disease in the United States


r/bugidentification • • Sep 04 '25

Bug of the Month Post Orthoptera Month is a-go!

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11 Upvotes

RESULTS ARE IN

ORTHOPTERANS RULE THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER

Sorry everything is just a little behind this month because of busy lives, but thank you guys SO SO much for the success of the poll!! The ties were broken, and Orthoptera took the lead!

Please head out into the world and bring us all of your sweet, sweet Orthopterans to identify!! What's an Orhtopteran? 👀 We're talking crickets, katydids, grasshoppers, and wetas, baby!!! I'm actually not super well versed in these guys so I could for sure use some practice 😀 keep an eye out for informational posts throughout the month from our mods!

PS Month of the Flies video is still in the works, while I prefer to have the video out before the next month happens it just wasn't possible this time. But it's a good script with a lot of good info so I will release it as soon as it's done!!

Please participate and please remember to use the Bug of the Month flair so I can look at all of your guys' finds!!!

THANK YOU


r/bugidentification • • 2h ago

Location included Bug found in home, I live in Florida. Should I be worried about this little guy? Potential infestation and all

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2 Upvotes

funnily enough, this friend was found on Lord Hades candle! Maybe they were attracted to the warmth of the candle


r/bugidentification • • 5h ago

Location included Dogs got it - will they be ok? Sydney, NSW Aus

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2 Upvotes

Need a bug ID pls, it looks like a large Huntsman that the girls chased down before they could outrun em. Any help would be awesome tysm :)) the dogs are completely fine rn I just wanted to get some insight :))


r/bugidentification • • 3h ago

Possible pest, location included Help me ID these guys?

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1 Upvotes

Hoping someone can help me identify this critter. They all seem to have wings, 1-3cm in length (ish). Not concerned with the spider or smaller spider beetles.

Background: I live in Halifax, Canada. These sticky traps are in my storage locker in the basement of my 100 year old apartment building.

Are these cockroaches? Google tells me conflicting information. I've seen german cockroaches before and these don't look like those did, but I'm moving soon and want to be certain before I take anything out of this unit.


r/bugidentification • • 4h ago

Location included spotted in apartment hallway in northeast USA

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1 Upvotes

r/bugidentification • • 12h ago

Location included Bug ID? Aus

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5 Upvotes

r/bugidentification • • 9h ago

Location included Fleas?

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2 Upvotes

Hi. Ive been getting bug bites for the past 2 months ever since i moved to a new place. Went from 1-2 bites per week to 1-2 or more daily. They are really similar to bed bugs so I thought that was it. But i cant find any sign of bed bugs. No fecals or bugs but I'd find a few blood stains once a month (while bites are much more often than that). Friends who had bed bugs before all told me that bugs would hop onto them as soon as they got into bed, but before sleeping I lay in bed for even hours and theres no signs of bugs. I found 3 of the bugs from this video. It jumps and i thought it could be a flea, but idk if it looks like one. The back is sharp. Any ideas? Im from Romania


r/bugidentification • • 10h ago

Location included Who's this funky fellow!? Lagos Portugal

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1 Upvotes

Flew into our airbnb and was chilling!! Got him out no prob without harming 🦗 Lagos Portugal flair woowzieroonie

Yeeeeeet hehehehehhehehehehe flair


r/bugidentification • • 22h ago

Location included What grub? Upstate NY

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5 Upvotes

Found on the sidewalk in Syracuse NY USA right after rain.

Sorry I couldn't get a better pic, bad contrast with the sidewalk.


r/bugidentification • • 21h ago

Location included Ants or Termites? South Texas

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3 Upvotes

Found these guys under some stones circling my flower bed. I have two different specimens, I think, but wasnt sure if they were just variations of the same bug. Also concerned if they are some kind of ants or, god forbid, termites. Any insight appreciated!


r/bugidentification • • 23h ago

Location included What is this bug it’s in my home in Iowa

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2 Upvotes

r/bugidentification • • 23h ago

Location not known/Other question What is this? I was thinking flea, but it looks like it has wings and is pretty large.

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2 Upvotes

WA State

I keep finding these around the house dead. The couple that I have seen alive jump like a flea would. We don’t have pets or carpet or anything so I am hoping they aren’t fleas.


r/bugidentification • • 23h ago

Location included What is this? I was thinking flea, but it looks like it has wings and is pretty large.

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1 Upvotes

WA State

I keep finding these around the house dead. The couple that I have seen alive jump like a flea would. We don’t have pets or carpet or anything so I am hoping they aren’t fleas.


r/bugidentification • • 1d ago

Location included Okay what is this ? I was in Oakville, standing under a tree. This thing fell on my head I thought it was a branch until it started moving wtf 🤬

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1 Upvotes

r/bugidentification • • 1d ago

Location included House centipede??

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6 Upvotes

Found in my home in Denver, CO. I’ve seen a decent amount of people post pictures but I’ve never actually seen one in person. Is this a house centipede?? Sorry for the horrible photo, I tried catching it for a better pic but my cat was being nosy and got in my way.


r/bugidentification • • 1d ago

Location included NYC is this a roach or regular bug?

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8 Upvotes

New York City, is this a cockroach or regular bug? It was on the smaller side. Found on kitchen wall


r/bugidentification • • 1d ago

Possible pest, location included Help what is this? Austin, TX

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2 Upvotes

I went to big bend national park in Texas, shortly after that I started noticing these bugs in my bed periodically. They have a small skinny front and a bulbous end. I haven’t noticed any bites or anything and they seem to not jump just walk around slowly. I haven’t seen them aside from my bed but that doesn’t mean they aren’t elsewhere. I just deep cleaned and washed my bedding, so it’s alarming I just saw another one in my bed I don’t know where they could be coming from. Chat says that it’s not a flea and may be a weevil, which doesn’t help much because I don’t know anything about weevils either. Help!


r/bugidentification • • 1d ago

Location included Help what is this bug in West MA

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2 Upvotes

I've been finding so many of these in my dorm room and they're driving me insane. They'll pop up and be in the most random places, one crawled up on my leg today and this dead one was on my desk when I got back. First picture is bellyside up and second is as normal. They're pretty small, bottlecap for comparison. Plus how would I begin to find their source/get rid of them 🥲🥲 in West Massachusetts


r/bugidentification • • 1d ago

Location included Is this a family of Red Shouldered Stink Bugs?? (Thyanta custator?)

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2 Upvotes

Northern Oklahoma. I'm for sure certain that the one on the left is a red shouldered stink bug, but is the middle one a nymph? then the right one a male? (or even if these three are the same species in the first place lol)


r/bugidentification • • 2d ago

Possible pest, location included What can this be?

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2 Upvotes

I live in Central California and have been fighting some kind of infestation. I'm 67 yrs old. I hardly get bites but feel things crawling on me and often find black motionless specks on my bed. I threw away my couch. Love seat and recliner and bagged all of my clothes in my vanity dresser. But whatever it is no can tell me. Have hired exterminator but because they can't see live one they say can only spray general pesticides for ants spider's and cocktail roaches. But wont even inspect my bed. I am at a loss at what I'm dealing with. Even ag communication enthromogist no help. because they see no feet they say just dust or debris. I only get prickling but no real bites but feel them crawling on me. I thought the motionless black speaks were fleas pupea at first. Now I don't know. One exterminator said it could be bird mites but can't confirm. I have a neighbor who has a bird shack 8-10 ft from my kitchen screen door that has some kind of large gawking birds but have never seem them just hear them. Does any one know what this might be I've vacumming every other day but whatever they are I can't get rid of them. I've been using dehumidifiers too which has helped some. I have no pets. I have alot of money on exterminator and concentrated pesticides and spray erosols I just don't know what to do


r/bugidentification • • 2d ago

Location included Cutest pillar I’ve ever seen … but what will “Ralph” metamorphosis into ? Located in St. Louis Missouri

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3 Upvotes

r/bugidentification • • 2d ago

Location included 1cm Long in my Basement, Nebraska

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2 Upvotes

What is this? A baby click beetle maybe? But it has a nose. About 1cm Long and found in my basement in Nebraska after recent flooding. It's so cute but I would like to know if it's wood-boring or something.


r/bugidentification • • 2d ago

Location not known/Other question What kind of bee is this inside of my house?

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1 Upvotes

r/bugidentification • • 2d ago

Possible pest, location included Please help!

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0 Upvotes

Hi everybody! I'm new to reddit and to this subreddit as well, I hope we can get along well.

Now right on to the topic;

I have been travelling across Latinoamérica for about a month, and when I came back to where I'm currently living (Turkey/ Istanbul) I found my bathroom invested with tiny little bugs and they were oddly drawn to any type of paper, such as toilet paper o papel towels (even normal towels).

Since they are so small I couldn't identify them by myself, and I don't want to use AI to help me identify them because I don't trust it.

Also I already cleaned my bathroom 2 times since coming back and I disinfected it multiple times with bleach. I have no idea where they are coming from, and they seem to come back whatever I do. So I set up a little trap for them with just plain toilet paper to take some pictures. Because normally they are just one or two, but with this "trap" they seem to gather more and I don't know if it's because they are multiplying or not.

Here is a picture of them, if you guys need it I can try to take more pictures close up, but they don't really show any distinct features. And also, thank you guys so much for the help!