Spotting

wow, another advantage of this website becomes apparent. I would not have known to avoid them--we don't have them on the west coast.

yes. I have a picture of the same thing on here. It definitely is a wheel bug nymph. and i agree with Gordon, they have venom that dissolves soft tissue. Not as bad on a human compared to if they bite another insect but still hurts really bad!

This appears to be a wheelbug nymph (Arilus cristatus). See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheel_bug for more info. These guys can inflict a painful bite!