Kissing Bug or Look-alike? - Ask Extension
Hello,
I am reaching out as our dog found this insect and I am having a hard time determining its genus and species. It appears to have many of the...
Knowledgebase
Kissing Bug or Look-alike? #890250
Asked November 24, 2024, 11:21 PM EST
Hello,
I am reaching out as our dog found this insect and I am having a hard time determining its genus and species. It appears to have many of the classic kissing bug characteristics, sans the horizontal abdominal markings. Similarly, there were a few look-alikes in the wheel and seed bug categories, but none quite fit there either. Since we are located in Maryland, the species variety would otherwise also appear to be a limiting factor. Google lens came back with only the kissing bug as an answer. If you can please provide any clarity, we would be beyond grateful as our dog and my husband touched the squashed bug (at that point quite clearly not alive). I cannot determine if my dog was bit, however.
Anne Arundel County Maryland
Expert Response
Good news.
This is not a kissing bug, and even if it were, they are not of concern in Maryland.
What you have there is a Large Milkweed Bug, which is a harmless insect native to Maryland that evolved along with other native flora and fauna, especially in conjunction with our native milkweed (the only plant that Monarch butterfly larvae can eat).
Here is one of our blog posts on them:
https://marylandgrows.umd.edu/2018/09/26/theyre-orange-and-black-and-not-butterflies-whats-eating-my-milkweed-plant/
There are a couple of species of so-called kissing bugs in Maryland but they are not of concern.
The main concern with kissing bugs is not their bite but their potential to be vectors of the parasite that causes Chagas disease, also known as American trypanosomiasis. Chagas disease is found worldwide, but the majority of new cases due to transmission by kissing bugs are found in rural areas of Mexico and Latin America, often in places where sanitation and housing is poor (as in no windows (just open holes) or screens).
Here is our page on kissing bugs with more information:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/kissing-bugs/
Christine
This is not a kissing bug, and even if it were, they are not of concern in Maryland.
What you have there is a Large Milkweed Bug, which is a harmless insect native to Maryland that evolved along with other native flora and fauna, especially in conjunction with our native milkweed (the only plant that Monarch butterfly larvae can eat).
Here is one of our blog posts on them:
https://marylandgrows.umd.edu/2018/09/26/theyre-orange-and-black-and-not-butterflies-whats-eating-my-milkweed-plant/
There are a couple of species of so-called kissing bugs in Maryland but they are not of concern.
The main concern with kissing bugs is not their bite but their potential to be vectors of the parasite that causes Chagas disease, also known as American trypanosomiasis. Chagas disease is found worldwide, but the majority of new cases due to transmission by kissing bugs are found in rural areas of Mexico and Latin America, often in places where sanitation and housing is poor (as in no windows (just open holes) or screens).
Here is our page on kissing bugs with more information:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/kissing-bugs/
Christine
