Anyone know what this bug is?

Submitted by kdternal t3_yapzwd in newjersey

Moved here in June and new to the area. In central jersey (yes central), don't like the giants or the eagles yet, wondering what this is? There's a bunch around the house and not sure if I should do anything about it

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kennedyBeach t1_itclfgg wrote

It's an elder box bug. They are completely harmless and native to the area. They actually live on elderbox trees, so if you see what it means there's an elder box tree nearby. They like the sunlight and they congregate on the sunny side of your house, but they do not destroy anything. They are friendly little Folks

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whatsasimba t1_itd4osy wrote

They used to live under the wood shingles in the house I rented. When the weather was cold, you never saw one. When the sun would heat that side. They'd all come out sunning themselves. Totally chill bug friends.

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theluce39 t1_itdxi0j wrote

Always knew as pumpkin bugs due to their coloration. Learned something new today. Thanks!

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fartachoke t1_iteuv8h wrote

I’m happy I know this now, and sad that I smooshed one today. ☹️ He was on my trash can lid and I assumed he was invasive like the lantern flies and the stink bugs because I have never seen one in all my forty years in NY.

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6dee9 t1_itc794a wrote

Idk but it looks ready for Halloween

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njmj t1_itekfuu wrote

Seriously, we've had these at our house for years and called them Halloween bugs! They're always around at this time of year.

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leraygun t1_itds1t6 wrote

How do we arm and train them to fight the spotted lanternflies?

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ophidiophobia_py_dev t1_itgpn4x wrote

Well guns are hard to come by here I say give them fentanyl patches and they'll OD the lantern flies

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PRSG12 t1_itfb2jj wrote

its a lvl 99 lantern fly actually, you cant kill it if you tried, it has maximum defense

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mklinger23 t1_itdbu08 wrote

For future reference, r/whatisthisbug is pretty helpful

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ptowndavid t1_itcs6bi wrote

Lucky for you the Jets have plenty of room on the disappoint bandwagon.

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TheRealMetal t1_itd3odc wrote

Jets catching strays on a thread about an NJ bug lmfao

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beeps-n-boops t1_itd3dzp wrote

Are you sure you're replying in the right thread?

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ptowndavid t1_itd40lr wrote

They said they still weren’t a giants or eagles fan yet.

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beeps-n-boops t1_itd6luh wrote

Who said? You're replying to the OP, who didn't say anything at all outside of the question.

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ptowndavid t1_itdcof2 wrote

The OP said. Look at his post. You are missing it.

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beeps-n-boops t1_itf8rgx wrote

As someone else mentioned, I'm not seeing that as apparently it was posted using a feature that Old Reddit doesn't support. (I really dislike New Reddit and don't plan to use it until they turn off Old Reddit.)

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craywolf t1_itdgxc5 wrote

You use Old Reddit don't you?

New Reddit lets you caption image uploads. The captions don't show up on Old.

Edit: Actually seems like it's something with RES + Old Reddit? I see it in another profile, not sure what the difference is. But anyway I'm guessing it's the same for you.

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MerlinBrando t1_itd24s1 wrote

theyre harmless but a nuisance. they sometimes swarm. They used to congregate on my front porch in the thousands and found it easy to get inside of my very old house.

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fluffybabypuppies t1_itdxv5l wrote

Download the iNaturalist Seek app for future plant/bug/animal ID! It’s super helpful for questions like this.

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thisoneagain t1_itgf53g wrote

I can't properly express the joy that just came into my heart to finally see this question in this sub WITHOUT a spotted lantern fly pic attached.

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aWormhatForVermhat t1_itcuujg wrote

Box elder bug! My mom used to send me out to kill them with a spray bottle of soap and water 🤷🏻‍♀️

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PhatRam32 t1_itdgj6w wrote

Elder Box Bug or Kamala Bug

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free2571 t1_ite04p1 wrote

Box elder beetle. nearly impossible to kill with sprays. Hornet spray works, but you have to get it directly on them. Fought a losing battle with them on my house for 30 years.

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b4ngl4d3sh t1_iteyqhe wrote

Saw a blue tinged one this spring! Always wondered what he was.

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fart-nomster t1_iteq165 wrote

Don’t matter switch that mofo

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Mdh74266 t1_itdkras wrote

That bug doesn’t exist…just like central jersey

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CountryBlk t1_ite7pay wrote

Kill it. Raid won’t work.

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IsiahTheGreat5 t1_itd76lq wrote

Aren’t these the ones we have to kill ?

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CrucioCup t1_itdfrd2 wrote

Nope those are lanternflies. Grey on top, red & white when they open their wings

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CreatrixAnima t1_itdyf2j wrote

And polkadotted. Actually quite pretty, and I always feel bad when I kill them, but I kill them.

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Infamous_Vacation693 t1_itdhvnp wrote

Lantern fly maybe

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potatochipsfox t1_itdjsoq wrote

Love it when someone hops into a thread where the correct answer was posted with evidence hours ago and they just drop some nonsense in the comments anyway

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Hannibam86 t1_itcrfqk wrote

I believe the scientific name is the Cheatingis myexgirlfriendes

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