Kissing bugs are insects that can be found in 29 U.S. states, mostly in southern regions They feed on blood from vertebrates, including humans, similar to mosquitoes While their bites can be painful, kissing bugs are not truly dangerous to humans in most cases. At most, their bites may cause some itching or mild swelling which can be treated with ice packs or over-the-counter antihistamines. Severe reactions are very rare.
Kissing bugs are more commonly found in rural areas and feed predominantly on wild animals. However, they can occasionally make their way into homes, particularly in southern states where their populations are high outdoors.
While actual kissing bug sightings indoors are uncommon, their resemblance to other harmless bug species often leads to misidentifications by concerned homeowners. Here are 11 bugs that are sometimes mistaken for kissing bugs but do not pose a threat to humans or animals.
1. Flat Bugs
Flat bugs have a very similar flat and rounded body shape to kissing bugs. Both species feature a broad, flattened abdomen that tapers slightly towards the head. They also share an elongated, cone-shaped head.
However, flat bugs can be differentiated by their coloring and habits. They have a solid brown body marked with irregular black splotches that resemble tree bark, providing camouflage when resting against trees
Unlike kissing bugs that seek out animals’ breath, flat bugs are attracted to the pheromones released by bark beetles, a major forest pest. Flat bugs pursue these trees-damaging beetles, but only in trees that are already dead. They do not transmit diseases or bite humans.
2. Leaf-Footed Bugs
Leaf-footed bugs display high variability in body shape, with some oval like kissing bugs and others more elongated. However, both forms share the grayish-brown coloring of kissing bugs that serves as camouflage against trees.
Like kissing bugs, some species have a long proboscis that resembles a snout. This elongated mouthpart allows them to pierce plant tissues and suck juices.
Some leaf-footed bugs are crop pests of squash and tomatoes, but they do not drink blood or spread diseases. Removing overwintering sites helps control populations.
3. Scentless Plant Bugs
Scentless plant bugs share a body length of 0.35-0.53 inches with kissing bugs. Their dark brown or black bodies marked with red also closely resemble kissing bugs. These two species also occupy overlapping habitats like Texas and California.
However, scentless plant bugs feed only on seeds, not blood. They live under trees rather than in homes and do not transmit diseases. Controlling populations involves removing the trees they prefer, like goldenrain trees.
4. Boxelder Bugs
Boxelder bugs are familiar across North America, commonly seen clinging to boxelder, maple and ash trees. Like kissing bugs, they have a dark, flattened, oval-shaped body reaching 0.5 inches long.
However, boxelder bugs can be identified by their distinct black bodies marked with orange-red. They also cluster on trees and structures in full sun during fall, unlike the shade-loving kissing bugs.
5. Seed Bugs
Seed bugs in the family Lygaeidae have several wing veins like kissing bugs and similar color patterns of black marked with orange-brown. They also share three pairs of legs and long antennae.
Related Rhyparochromidae seed bugs are mottled brown with three sets of legs and oblong bodies. However, unlike kissing bugs, both groups feed strictly on seeds, not blood.
6. Chinch Bugs
Chinch bugs have the flattened body form of kissing bugs, and juveniles are reddish like some kissing bug species. Adults are dark-colored like kissing bugs as well. Another similarity is aggregating in hidden warm locations.
However, chinch bugs inhabit lawns and feed on grass blades rather than blood. Their destruction of turfgrass identifies them immediately. Their resistance to insecticides also sets them apart from the less hardy kissing bugs.
7. Stink Bugs
Various stink bug species display the long mouthparts of kissing bugs suited for piercing plant tissues and sucking fluids. However, stink bugs feed on plants and sometimes other insects rather than blood.
And their name comes from the foul smell they release when threatened, a defense kissing bugs do not share. A shield-like body shape also helps distinguish stink bugs.
8. Bordered Plant Bugs
The colorful markings along the edges of bordered plant bugs can resemble the stripes seen on some kissing bug species. Both groups have dark wings fringed with paler yellow or orange.
However, bordered plant bugs feed on plant juices, not blood. And they inhabit vegetation more than manmade structures where kissing bugs occasionally venture. Their stout, flattened bodies reach over 2 inches long.
9. Assassin Bugs
Assassin bugs are predators like kissing bugs and can deliver a painful bite to humans if threatened. Their long piercing mouthparts resemble the blood-sucking beak of kissing bugs as well.
But assassin bugs hunt other insects rather than drinking blood. And they inflict noticeably painful bites, unlike the usually imperceptible kissing bug. Bodiesreaching 1.5 inches longare also darker than kissing bugs.
10. Damsel Bugs
Damsel bugs display a few similarities to kissing bugs, including an oblong, flattened body about 0.6 inches in length and a head that tapers forward. Their three pairs of legs and beak-like mouthparts resemble kissing bugs as well.
However, rather than blood, damsel bugs siphon body fluids from other insects they capture with their front legs. And they are beneficial predators in gardens rather than pests.
11. Plant Bugs
With oval bodies up to 0.5 inches long, plant bugs in the Miridae family resemble kissing bugs physically. However, their wings have just four segments instead of the six found on kissing bugs.
And their heads are rounded rather than tapered. But most obviously, plant bugs feed only on plant juices, not blood. And unlike kissing bugs, plant bugs sport brightly patterned markings in white, yellow, brown and black.
So while kissing bugs have close doppelgangers, a few key physical traits and habits differentiate these harmless lookalikes from the blood-feeding kissing bugs. Learning how to positively identify kissing bugs ensures homeowners react appropriately if they suspect an infestation. But in many cases, an innocent imposter is to blame instead.
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January 2021Zachary Schumm, Arthropod Diagnostician (No longer at USU)
What You Should Know
- Kissing bugs are a type of true bug, in the assassin bug family, that feeds on the blood of vertebrates.
- The only species of kissing bug known to occur in Utah is the western conenose bug (Triatoma protracta), and it is not commonly found.
- While western conenose bug can carry the parasite that causes Chagas disease of humans, transmission is not likely to occur; the parasite is not transmitted from bites.
- Bites from a kissing bug can cause localized redness or swelling, which usually subsides without treatment. Allergic reactions are uncommon.
- Prevention of kissing bugs in the home is best achieved by sealing up gaps in window and door frames and reducing night lighting that attracts the bugs.
Kissing bugs are a member of the insect order Hemiptera (the true bugs). Like all true bugs (which includes squash bugs, stink bugs, aphids, boxelder bugs, and others), the kissing bug has a piercing-sucking mouthpart that is used for feeding. Specifically, kissing bugs are a type of assassin bug in the insect family Reduviidae, which are considered beneficial because they are predatory and feed on other insects that could be considered pests. However, some assassin bugs, specifically those in the subfamily Triatominae (“kissing bugs”), feed on the blood of vertebrates and some are known vectors of the parasite that causes Chagas disease. Kissing bugs are the only insects known to transmit this parasite.
Chagas disease is caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. Kissing bugs vector the parasite. There is a common misconception that the parasite can be transmitted from a kissing bug bite, but this is not the case. Instead, it exists in the insect’s feces. Humans can become infected when infected feces comes into contact with a mucous membrane (eyes, mouth, nose, etc.) or a break in the skin. Thus, if a kissing bug that is carrying the parasite bites a human and defecates near the bite, subsequent scratching of the bite or touching of a mucous membrane after contacting the infected feces could result in infection. Other methods of transmission such as congenital (from an infected pregnant mother to child) and via blood transfusion using blood from an infected individual are possible but uncommon. Eleven species of kissing bugs are known to occur in the United States, all of which feed on the blood of vertebrates (CDC, 2020). The western conenose bug, Triatoma protracta, is the only species of kissing bug known to occur in Utah. Seven additional species of kissing bugs are known to occur in the Southwest and Mountain West regions of the U.S.: Paratriatoma hirsuta, Triatoma gerstaeckeri, T. incrassata, T. indictiva, T. lecticularia, T. recurva, and T. rubida. To view photos and geographic range of other species, visit the CDC webpage on kissing bugs. The life cycle and prevention of kissing bugs is similar regardless of species.
Some insects in Naples look similar to the deadly kissing bug
FAQ
What can be mistaken for kissing bug?
There are several insects that are commonly mistaken for “kissing bugs”that do occur in and around homes statewide, including western conifer-seed bug and masked hunter.
Is there another bug that looks like a kissing bug?
Another bug that may look like the kissing bug is the leaf-footed bug. Adults are about 0.75-1 inch long, so they are about the same size as a kissing bug.Dec 27, 2023
How do you tell if a bug is a kissing bug?
KISSING BUGS — How to identify
They have a ‘cone-shaped’ head, thin antennae, and thin legs. All of the kinds of kissing bugs found in the United States are mainly black or very dark brown, with red, orange or yellow ‘stripes’ around the edge of their bodies.
Is assassin bug the same as kissing bug?
Kissing bugs are members of the insect family called Reduviidae. This means they are related to other kinds of reduviids. Some reduviids are called ‘assassin bugs’ because they eat other insects. Kissing bugs are different than assassin bugs.
What insects resemble kissing bugs?
It turns out that there are a number of common insects that can resemble kissing bugs. One of these, the western conifer seed bug (Leptoglossus occidentalis), is regularly encountered in the upper Midwest because these insects sneak indoors in the fall just like boxelder bugs.
What do kissing bugs look like?
Kissing bugs are mostly brown or black. They might come with bright marks on the body. They have a flat round abdomen, a conical head, and a snout-like proboscis or mouthpiece. Typical marks are either red, orange, yellow, or a combination of these colors. These colored marks are mostly short parallel lines that run alongside the wings.
What do Arizona kissing bugs look like?
Size and shape: Kissing bugs are generally about 0.75 to 1.25 inches long. They have a distinctive elongated shape with a flattened body. Color: Kissing bugs’ coloring can vary. Many species are dark brown or black with reddish or orange markings along the edges of the abdomen. Arizona kissing bugs are often reddish-brown.
Are all bugs kissing bugs?
But not all insects vaguely resembling the pictures you might see on television or in the newspaper are kissing bugs. In fact, there are over 38,000 different kinds of insects in the “true bugs” suborder to which kissing bugs belong. So to make things easier, let’s review what to look for when a suspicious “bug” shows up in your home or landscape.
Do kissing bugs have spines?
There are no distinctive spines or spikes on kissing bug legs, sides or top. While some insects may have some of these characters, only insects with all of these characteristics are likely to be kissing bugs. Add to this that kissing bugs come out mostly at night, and it shouldn’t be too difficult to distinguish kissing bugs from all other insects.
What is the difference between flat bugs and kissing bugs?
Flat bugs are among the most similar species to Kissing bugs. Both species have a flattened body and around abdomen slightly narrow towards the head. Both Flat bugs and Kissing bugs have conical-shaped heads. Coloring is different on these species as Flat bugs exhibit a brown body with black marks that resemble tree bark.