Mwewe Posted August 22, 2021 Share Posted August 22, 2021 Hey folks, these guys have been in my composting bin for some time now. They alarmed me because they look kinda like bedbugs, but idk if they’d thrive in a cockroach bin 😱 as with most cooties I encounter in the bin, I usually just assume it’s got some role it’s playing in the composting process… but figured I’d ask. I might need to go to other inverts to ask for an ID. Are they something messing with my roaches and/or other critters? (Isopods, beetles, idk anything else, there’s a lot going on in there) If not they’re welcome to stay, nothing like good ol’ biodiversity. A small group of ants also formed a colony in there… one time they were raising babies in a potato haha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hisserdude Posted August 23, 2021 Share Posted August 23, 2021 Those do look like true bugs of some sort, (hence the bedbug-like look), but they are not bed bugs. Not sure what they are specifically, but based on the fact they are in a compost bin, probably predators of small invertebrates, (I don't think any true bugs are detritivores, they either drink plant sap or are predatory). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mwewe Posted September 13, 2021 Author Share Posted September 13, 2021 On 8/23/2021 at 3:15 AM, Hisserdude said: Those do look like true bugs of some sort, (hence the bedbug-like look), but they are not bed bugs. Not sure what they are specifically, but based on the fact they are in a compost bin, probably predators of small invertebrates, (I don't think any true bugs are detritivores, they either drink plant sap or are predatory). Hey Hisser! was googling about something on my cannabis plants, and somehow stumbled upon what these little dudes might be… (Minute) Pirate Bugs 🏴☠️ they are omnivorous and primarily eat smaller inverts/larva/eggs and will also drink sap. they can/do bite humans… ”Minute Pirate Bugs (scientific name: Orius insidiosus) are all around us most of the time, and we don’t even notice them. These tiny black bugs are beneficial insects, abundant in yards, gardens, woodlands, pastures, and farmlands. Pirate bugs are Hemiptera (true bugs) and members of the insect family Anthocoridae.” 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hisserdude Posted September 13, 2021 Share Posted September 13, 2021 18 hours ago, Mwewe said: Hey Hisser! was googling about something on my cannabis plants, and somehow stumbled upon what these little dudes might be… (Minute) Pirate Bugs 🏴☠️ they are omnivorous and primarily eat smaller inverts/larva/eggs and will also drink sap. they can/do bite humans… ”Minute Pirate Bugs (scientific name: Orius insidiosus) are all around us most of the time, and we don’t even notice them. These tiny black bugs are beneficial insects, abundant in yards, gardens, woodlands, pastures, and farmlands. Huh, that actually looks like exactly what you have. Must be feeding on other insects in the tub, so probably neutral or actually beneficial to have in there (other than them possibly biting you out of defense if grabbed or squished). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
All About Arthropods Posted September 14, 2021 Share Posted September 14, 2021 41 minutes ago, Hisserdude said: Huh, that actually looks like exactly what you have. Must be feeding on other insects in the tub, so probably neutral or actually beneficial to have in there (other than them possibly biting you out of defense if grabbed or squished). Not sure about @Mwewe's species, but at least some of them do also provide.....exploratory bites. 😅 They're not TERRIBLE, but shocking enough to where I've involuntarily jumped on the 1 or 2 occasions where I was bitten and hastily went back inside my house to contemplate why the bug gods had forsaken me so. 😢🤣 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hisserdude Posted September 14, 2021 Share Posted September 14, 2021 2 minutes ago, All About Arthropods said: Not sure about @Mwewe's species, but at least some of them do also provide.....exploratory bites. 😅 They're not TERRIBLE, but shocking enough to where I've involuntarily jumped on the 1 or 2 occasions where I was bitten and hastily went back inside my house to contemplate why the bug gods had forsaken me so. 😢🤣 Huh, well I've never really seen any myself, so I wouldn't know, thanks for the tip! Sounds rather unpleasant lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
All About Arthropods Posted September 14, 2021 Share Posted September 14, 2021 3 minutes ago, Hisserdude said: Huh, well I've never really seen any myself, so I wouldn't know, thanks for the tip! Sounds rather unpleasant lol! I haven't found any either, besides those couple times they found me. 😂 Yeah, I 10/10 would not recommend. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mwewe Posted October 1, 2021 Author Share Posted October 1, 2021 @All About Arthropods ahaha, yea the googles said their bites hurt. Luckily I’ve never been bit… yet 😱Their addition to the composting bin wasn’t intentional, they just “showed up” and have been in there a while. maybe I have been bit and just didn’t know it. I’ve been bit by lots of strange things lately. One looked kinda like a moth that landed on me, and as soon as I think ‘awww, moth :)’ the fugger bit me! And boy it caused a reaction. Got bit by a mite and got a reaction. Handle my roaches and have a reaction (prob from their claws). Mosquito bites look like day 3-5 brown recluse bites… scars everywhere. Oh, and regular ol’ ants generate more of a reaction than what I’d expect, and they have a way of getting in my armpits, back of the knee, bend in the elbow… the soft skin in places I’m likely to antagonize them… the bug gods really hate me… @Hisserdude So do you think isopods eggs/young/adult and roach eggs/nymphs/adults are okay? I don’t really care if they munch on the other cooties, so long as both their populations find equilibrium at some point, or they don’t completely crash the decomposing cooties. my floating aquatic plants are pretty heavily infested with aphids in some tanks, might try collecting a few (without getting bit 🤞🏻) and see if they do anything besides move away and/or drown 😂 wish I knew about them earlier, they could have saved my ladies from caterpillars 😡 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hisserdude Posted October 1, 2021 Share Posted October 1, 2021 12 hours ago, Mwewe said: So do you think isopods eggs/young/adult and roach eggs/nymphs/adults are okay? I don’t really care if they munch on the other cooties, so long as both their populations find equilibrium at some point, or they don’t completely crash the decomposing cooties. I don't think they'll attack isopods, but I could be wrong. As for roaches, they'll only be able to take down individuals their size or smaller most likely... So if the roach species in question are pretty large, I wouldn't worry about them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
All About Arthropods Posted October 2, 2021 Share Posted October 2, 2021 13 hours ago, Mwewe said: @All About Arthropods ahaha, yea the googles said their bites hurt. Luckily I’ve never been bit… yet 😱Their addition to the composting bin wasn’t intentional, they just “showed up” and have been in there a while. maybe I have been bit and just didn’t know it. I’ve been bit by lots of strange things lately. One looked kinda like a moth that landed on me, and as soon as I think ‘awww, moth :)’ the fugger bit me! And boy it caused a reaction. Got bit by a mite and got a reaction. Handle my roaches and have a reaction (prob from their claws). Mosquito bites look like day 3-5 brown recluse bites… scars everywhere. Oh, and regular ol’ ants generate more of a reaction than what I’d expect, and they have a way of getting in my armpits, back of the knee, bend in the elbow… the soft skin in places I’m likely to antagonize them… the bug gods really hate me… Good! Fingers crossed they just remain as harmless residents of the compost bin. Ouch! 😬 Sorry to hear! I'm fairly allergic to both mosquitoes and roaches as well, so I feel your pain on some level. 🙃 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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