masked hunter

masked hunter, (Reduvius personatus), species of nocturnal assassin bug widely known for its ability to camouflage itself as a ball of dust during its nymphal stage. The masked hunter lives chiefly outdoors, where it eats termites, earwigs, lacewings, pill bugs, and other arthropods. It sometimes enters homes and other dwellings, where it preys on such insects as bedbugs and flies. Originally a central European species, the insect has been introduced into parts of the United States and Canada, Australia, and India as well as other localities around the world. The masked hunter is considered a minor indoor nuisance; it does not damage fabrics or eat stored food. The insect will bite humans when threatened, causing pain and localized swelling, but—unlike kissing bugs, to which it is related—it does not feed on human blood or transmit diseases.

Physical description

As an insect, the masked hunter has a body formed of a head, a thorax, and an abdomen as well as six legs. The adult is brownish black and measures roughly 15 to 22 mm (0.6 to 0.87 inch) long. It has a flattened abdomen and a triangular thorax that tapers to a small head. A predatory assassin bug, it uses its short three-segmented beak to pierce prey and then suck the body fluids from it. When not in use, the retractable mouthparts characteristically tuck into a groove between the front legs, beneath the head and thorax.

Like most other true bugs (suborder Heteroptera), the masked hunter has two pairs of wings. The unusual forewings (called hemelytra) are stiff and have an oblique line that abruptly separates a leathery basal half from a membranous apical half. The hind wings are thin, delicate membranes that are folded under the protective forewings when at rest.

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Life cycle

The masked hunter undergoes incomplete metamorphosis (hemimetabolism) with three main stages: egg, nymph, and adult. The nymph resembles the adult in form and eating habits but differs in size, body proportions, and color pattern. Moreover, the nymph has only rudimentary wings and cannot fly. It is during this stage that the body, legs, and antennae become covered with sticky hairs that catch pieces of lint, dust, soil, and other debris. Such camouflage helps protect the immature insect from predators and allows it to ambush unwitting prey. Development is gradual, through a series of molts (periodic shedding of the exoskeleton), and the adult form emerges from the final molt to reproduce.