I know next to nothing about insects, but yesterday I happened to notice the creature that has been feasting on the foliage of one of the Asiatic lilies--one of the few to escape being eaten by the red squirrels, I might add. The bug I saw is bright red, and very fast; it is still on the loose. This thread caught my interest, and I ended up finding an interesting site (bugguide.net), and a thread on red insects, which led me to ponder someone's suggestion that the red bug in question might be (one of many stages of) a "true bug." If anyone cares to check 'em out, there are some photos from a search on bugguide.net for "true bug" at: http://bugguide.net/index.php?q=search&keys=true+bug What a fascinating world, the bug world, that is... Maureen from Maine

Thanks for responding, rhizo. I don't have access to the picture right now. Sometimes I cannot stand the searches on the internet. Everything leads to products and companies. I also found my question of a "couple of years ago" as in June 16, 2011. That is a little more than a couple. At that time "box elder" was what most seemed to say. However, these are round, not oblong. I do think the consensus was box elder, and just do not let them in the house. This year there are so many that I have become more concerned. They are all over the patio and porch. They are everywhere I try to dig. I am still reluctant to spray, except I sprayed Raid on the cement steps trying to stop them from coming into the house. My neighbor's tree is a maple, so the answer may be box elder, but i see no images online that are of round bugs like I have. They are easy to kill on the concrete, and smear a little red. I do not see legs, and they are not spiders. Do any of you have them? Sammy

This is the first I've seen of them so I'm not sure what they look like later in life. So, jean001a, are these harmful to the plants? Picture of the rhubarb is attached. I've looked it all over for slugs, cats and beetles and haven't found anything right on the plant. I thought it was slugs at first so I tried the beer can trick (my grandma used to have the same issues with rhubarb way back when) but when I went out to put the can down I saw chomps on higher leaves. Let me know what you think :)

I was going to say they are round, so not like the pictures of leafhoppers I looked up online. But I just went out and took a picture of them up close, and they are not exactly round, so maybe they are leafhoppers. I tried just jetting them all off with water, and that seemed to decrease the population at first, but now they are back, nearly as bad as before. It looks like I can post a photo on the Integrated Pest Management forum, so I will do that. Any ideas on what works with leafhoppers? This is a vegetable garden, so I would like to be able to eat what the bugs are on - at this point, mostly tomatoes and carrots.