Dont' Kill Anonymous Bugs

Milkweed Assassin bug nymphs

Master Gardener Glenn Berman was worried about these bugs he found on milkweeds in his yard.  After some inquiries and research, he determined they were Milkweed Assassin bug nymphs.  Great!  Assassin bugs prey on other insects and are very beneficial for your garden.  More about Milkweed Assassin bugs here. 

The first instinct on seeing an infestation like this is to get rid of these dangerous looking pests.  It's very important to identify the bugs in your garden as you might be destroying some of your most helpful partners.

Other nymphs that look similar to this are Leaf-footed bug nymphs.  As you can see from Glenn's photo, the nymphs look different at different stages of their development.  Some bad nymphs resemble each other or good nymphs or lady bugs, and the confusion goes on. 

It's worth the effort to do a bug ID search before you kill.  And solving a mystery is part of what's fun in the garden. 


Milkweed Assassin bug adult

Leaf-footed bug nymphs