Good advice above. You can also narrow down possibilities by crop - "common bean pests", "common squash pests", etc. and use the images tab. With some time and research you can quickly learn about the bad guys. Normally it is the damage we note first rather than the actual bug so also noting the type of damage done - tiny holes, big holes, chewed edges, wilting, shape of leaves (rolled up, turned under, etc) will help narrow it down. How much damage indicates if it is just a few pests that can be hand picked or many that need pesticide intervention. And since many pests are regional, don't forget all the resources from your local county extension office. They are good at narrowing down pests specific to your area. Dave Here is a link that might be useful: Insect IDs (note all categories listed on left)

Thanks for the responses to date. So it seems that it is surely a fungus and, regardless of the specific type, I would need some sort of fungicide. Cornmeal has been suggested, and that's a good thing, because where I live (Ontario, Canada), there appears to be NO lawn fungicides available at big box stores or nurseries. The closest you can get are garden fungicides that seem to be sulphur or copper based. (I'm seriously considering driving to New York state to get lawn fungicide!) So, what's a homeowner to do? I can try the cornmeal, as suggested, but there seems to be some debate on whether or not it works? I also seem to remember reading that either baking soda (or was it baking powder?) might also do the job? Any further suggestions are much appreciated.

These do eat plants when their numbers are high. They do. There should be no debating this. If anyone doesn't believe it, they haven't had an infestation of pill bugs and don't really have the experience to help someone regarding. I cannot grow legume or peas without killing these bugs in the area or they will take down every one of the healthy seedlings. I drench the soil in the area with liquid spinosad. Once the plant is established, it's good. I gotta eat, too. I read somewhere that pill bugs remove metals and is likely to remove some toxins in the soil. I'm still trying to figure why I have so many and what purpose they are serving beyond the normal "eat decaying matter".

I can deal with most of the bugs we have around here as they are only a minor annoyance except MOSQUITOS! They make it virtually impossible to enjoy a summer evening outdoors here. Trying to garden on a humid day is a nightmare. Standing outside talking to neighbors can get really annoying. There is no way to really get rid of them w/o using nasty pesticides or sprays that I don't really want to put on my body nor my kids! Of course, we have other bugs that can be a pain. We have occasional issues with ants, but none that are bad. This summer though, for the first time, we had them in our kitchen, which really grossed me out. Fortunately, an ant trap took care of it so it was over rather quickly. I also had pantry moths once and that was a total nightmare. Had to throw pretty much everything in my fully loaded pantry away and discovered them while making dinner so had to stop everything and immediately start binging as I was so grossed out. I had one or two minor outbreaks after that but with traps and putting everything that attracts them in airtight containers, I've had no problems since. But mosquitos....just no way to safely get rid of those unfortunately!