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Apiomerus sp.
This assassin bug is about 2 cm long. The top of the thorax is white. The posterior 1/2 of the wings are also white except for the smoky gray tips. The first joint and segment of the front legs are bright orange to red. The rest of this bug is dark black. They are called "Assassin Bugs" because the stalk their prey (generally other arthropods), or sit in ambush, catching them with their strong forelegs and then repeatedly stabbing them with their powerful beak that is usually kept tucked in toward the bottom of the thorax.
There are about 110 described species in the Apiomerus genus. They are found from the United States down through tropical America. This bug was found waiting on a wide blade of grass along the side of a trail (300 masl) in the Amazon rainforest in SE Ecuador very near the Peruvian border. Although Assassin bugs don’t eat plants or leaves, they can often be found there as they stalk other insects.
Caution: New word approaching (at least for me) - The bright colors are "aposematic" [denoting coloration or markings serving to warn or repel predators], likely a warning to larger predators that a painful bite can be delivered. Large specimens can give a painful jab with their beaks, something that should be considered before handling them :-)
Spotted on Sep 16, 2012
Submitted on Apr 28, 2019
2 Comments
Thanks Mauna. They are interesting bugs.
Very nice shots and interesting notes!