Murgantia histrionica
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The harlequin cabbage bug (Murgantia histrionica), also known as calico bug, fire bug or harlequin bug, is a black stinkbug of the family Pentatomidae, brilliantly marked with red, orange, yellow and white markings. It is a major pest of cabbage and related crops in the Brassicaceae, as well as the ornamental flower cleome throughout tropical and North America, especially the warmer parts of the United States. Nymphs are active during the summer and in the tropics the bug can achieve three to six generations a year. In the northern range there is only one generation annually and the insects overwinter as adults in crop residues or field edges. Organic control involves hand-picking the insects off the plants (they can be dropped into soapy water to drown them) and being especially careful to remove and destroy all the eggs, which are black-and-white striped, laid in clutches of twelve.
Harlequin bugs are phytophagous insects. Adults and nymphs feed on the stems and leaves of plants such as cabbage, broccoli, kale, turnip, radish, horseradish, mustard and rapeseed, and often cause blotching by their piercing-sucking feeding. These plants are economically... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joshua Tree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Yosemite National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Sacramento | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Philadelphia | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 6 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 7 | Denver | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 8 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Dallas | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Harlequin Bug sighting in Austin on a given day, based on 108 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 274th most-seen of the 1624 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March to June
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Harlequin Bug in Austin on a given day, against under 5% in July to February, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Harlequin Bug sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 14 cities where we can rate Harlequin Bug sightings, Austin ranks 9th at about 10%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in San Diego (United States, about 10%), Sacramento (United States, about 10%) and Los Angeles (United States, about 10%).
Same family: Pentatomidae
The closest relatives of the Harlequin Bug that you can see in Austin (family Pentatomidae, Stink Bugs) are Elf Shoe Stink Bug (about 10%), Green Stink Bug (about 10%) and Juniper Stink Bug (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Harlequin Bug is recorded against all the insects logged in Austin (108 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
