Milkweed Bug Information

Milkweed bugs are known as true bugs or hemiptera, that belong to the family Lygaeidae. Hemiptera is an order of insects that possess sucking mouthparts and thickened forewings, which are the main features that distinguish them from other insects. The long mouthpart used by the milkweed bugs to feed themselves is known as 'rostrum'. Milkweed bugs are of two types, small and large milkweed bugs. As the name suggests, these bugs are found in the milkweed plant and they feed on the grains or seeds of this plant.

Milkweed Bug Information
Milkweed bugs exhibit several interesting behavior and their physical appearance, life cycle as well as the developmental stages are characterized by some unique features. So, let's take a brief look at some amazing milkweed bug information and facts, specifically related to its food, habitat, morphology and life cycle.

Morphology of Milkweed Bug
Like all other insects, the body of the milkweed bug can also be divided into three parts, namely, head, thorax and abdomen. The bug contains six delicate legs, two antennae and a long proboscis. This elongated proboscis is used to serve two important purposes. Firstly, it is used to tear or pierce the tissues and also to inject its saliva, which contains digestive enzyme. So, like other insects, milkweed bugs do not have a mouth to chew food materials. Instead, they suck food with the help of the long mouthpart.

The color of the body of a milkweed bug is usually orange-red or black, and its abdomen remains covered with the fully grown wings. The freshly molted bugs are pale yellow colored with a few gray spots, while the mature adults are orange colored. You can easily identify them with the black rhomboidal spots present at both ends of the body. A black band can also be found just at the middle of the body. The adult female can be distinguished by the presence of one black strip and two black spots on the rear part of the abdomen. On the other hand, the male milkweed bug contains only one black spot, but two black strips on that particular area.

Food and Habitat
The milkweed bugs survive on the seeds and tissues of the milkweed plant, which usually reaches a height of 3 to 4 feet. The bugs draw nutrients by sucking juice from the tissues of the milkweed plant. They can be observed in groups on the underside of the milkweed leaves. In fall, you can find some 3 to 4 inches long seed pods in the plant. These seed pods contain the seeds, which are the main food of milkweed bugs. One of the important milkweed bugs facts is, that they exhibit gregarious behavior, i.e. they tend to form groups with other members of their species. This grouping can be mainly observed during the night.

Facts about Milkweed Bug Life Cycle
Milkweed bugs undergo incomplete metamorphosis, for which, they are also known as hemimetabolous insects. The immature nymphs, therefore, closely resemble the adult milkweed bugs, except the color pattern of their body. In addition to this, the nymphs do not contain fully developed wings, unlike their adult counterparts. The life cycle of milkweed bugs begins with laying of eggs. The female usually lays about 20 bright red colored eggs in a day, which she places in areas like, ball of the milkweed seed fluff, for protection. The eggs then hatch in about a week and the immature nymphs emerge from the eggs. The nymphs start to grow and in the course of time, they molt five times, till they reach adulthood. Molting can be defined as the periodic shedding of the cuticle or exoskeleton for growing.

The hard exoskeleton or cuticle that protects the tiny nymphs, prevents them from growing. Therefore, they shed the original exoskeleton and in its place, a new moist and more flexible one develops. This allows the nymph to grow. But, eventually the new exoskeleton also hardens, which lead to further shedding and molting, as the nymphs continue to grow. In this way, molting takes place five times, till the immature nymphs become mature and adults. Accordingly, the entire developmental process can be divided into five nymphal stages, which are also known as instars. The first instars refers to the emergence of the milkweed bug from the egg, the second instar corresponds to the first molting. Ultimately, the nymphs reach the adulthood in the fifth molt.

So, milkweed bugs go through a simple metamorphosis to reach adulthood. After reaching adulthood, the bugs mate within a week or so. One of the most interesting milkweed bug information is, that they have the ability to concentrate the toxic compounds found in the sap of the milkweed plant in their body. This gives them a repelling taste, which, however, protects them from the potential predators. The bright color of their body is often used to warn their predators, about this toxicity or bad taste.