The mobile bright orange beetle is called the “red soldier beetle” in England; in Russia it is known as the red beetle (umbrella). The insect of the Cantharidae family is distinguished by a soft body cover. Despite their own vulnerability, adult beetles and larvae are ruthless predators. Their victims are small invertebrates, flies, and aphids. The softshell repeatedly attacks its prey, biting until it dies. Adults expand their diet by eating flower petals and pollen.
Firefighter beetle: appearance and description of the species
The fireman beetle, red-legged soft beetle or country soft beetle (Cantharis rustica) is a species of soft beetle that has a slightly flattened body and a rather remarkable appearance. The insect grows up to 1.5 cm. The body of the firefighter beetle consists of seven joints. On the pronotum, the first segment of the red body, there is a black spot, the beetle's wings are dark gray, and the abdomen is red.
The beetle's body is covered with hairs and its legs have claws.
There is a pair of thread-like antennae on the head. They consist of eleven joints. There is a dark spot at the top of the head; it is a characteristic feature of the fire beetle.
Why is the fire beetle called that? The insect earned this name due to its black and red color, somewhat reminiscent of a fire engine.
The firefighter beetle is often called by another name - “red-legged soft beetle”, because its elytra do not have a hard chitinous covering, instead they are soft and flexible.
The lifespan of insects is short; they begin to mate at the age of one month, and after that they die quite quickly.
Beetles have pronounced sexual dimorphism: the female is much larger than the male.
Despite the fact that beetles do not have a chitinous covering, they are not as harmless as they seem at first glance. The tissues of this insect contain cantharidin, a toxic substance that protects the beetle from natural enemies. The red color serves as a warning to birds, frogs and other animals that might try to eat the beetle.
origin of name
Of course, the main feature due to which the red-legged soft beetle began to be called the fireman beetle is the color of the beetle. Most often, the insect has black elytra, red legs and body. Its body reaches approximately 20 mm in length, while it is flattened and soft, and the head is retracted into the body.
Such an unusual coloring, complemented by a characteristic dark spot near the beetle’s head, is associated by many with the uniform of firefighters. Therefore, the alternative name of the soft-bodied animal stuck among the people.
How do fire beetles reproduce?
In mid-summer, around July, insects begin their mating period.
After mating, the female lays eggs in a soft substrate, for example, in leaf litter, rotten branches, rotting stumps, boards, etc. Soon the female and the male die.
After 15-20 days (depending on weather conditions), larvae emerge from the eggs. The larvae are shaggy, dark in color and covered with dense hairs.
Fire beetle larvae, like adults, are predators and have extraintestinal digestion. The beetle's caterpillars find the victim, inject their food juice into it - a special substance, under the influence of which the tissues of the victim's body begin to dissolve. The larva then sucks in its liquid entrails.
By winter, some of the larvae pupate, while others hide in rotten wood or rotten leaves. The pupation stage lasts about two weeks. Then young beetles emerge from the pupae.
Reasons for appearance
The main reasons for the appearance of soldier bugs on the site include:
- rotten stumps in the garden;
- dried plants;
- piles of dry garbage and leaves;
- a large number of weeds, especially quinoa and wormwood;
- legumes;
- woodpiles;
- alfalfa in your or neighbors’ garden;
- growing carrots, cabbage, beets, and currants on the plot.
Insects especially love alfalfa. To get rid of the larvae, you need to pull out the weed along with the roots and burn it.
All gardeners have the soldier bug
The insects often nest in legumes and alfalfa to survive the winter cold.
In some cases, bedbugs may appear in an apartment, more often in a private house. If you have indoor flowers, seedlings or other vegetation, insects will multiply very quickly. There is a tendency that when one soldier appears, other relatives come running after him. In the absence of food, they die or go to other places.
What do fire beetles eat?
These insects are predators; firefighter beetles feed on all insects that are smaller than them, as well as those that have a soft body, since the firefighter beetle is not able to bite through the chitinous layer. Its diet includes: aphids, leaf beetles, small chafers, sleepy flies, caterpillars and larvae.
The red-legged soft calf tracks its prey from a flight altitude, then it lands on it or next to it. Afterwards, the insect bites through the victim, injects poison and digestive juice into it, after which the insides of the victim become soft, and the beetle drinks them.
In rare cases, the firebug may eat leaves and flower petals.
The larvae feed on centipedes, grubs and small worms.
Interaction with people
In most cases, red soft beetles are beneficial insects. Throughout the summer, they destroy garden and vegetable pests, as well as their eggs and larvae. Beetles are able to cleanse the house of such unpleasant neighbors as cockroaches. The softies themselves do not penetrate human habitation; they will have to be caught and brought indoors. During the dry season, when the beetles multiply significantly, they damage the buds of berry and fruit crops. Adults always feed on pollen and flowers of plants, but in small numbers their influence is unnoticeable.
Are fire beetles dangerous for humans?
Insects are predators with strong jaws, so fire beetles can bite a person, and such a bite is quite painful.
Despite this, beetles are useful because they help in pest control. If there are a lot of beetles, caterpillars or other insects in the garden that are part of the firebug's diet, then it can help reduce their population.
By the way, beetles were even used to fight cockroaches in the past. It was enough to release a few firefighter beetles into the house, and soon the cockroaches left it.
Where is it distributed?
The soldier bug is widespread throughout Eurasia, northern Africa and the United States. Countries with a temperate climate are favorable for insect reproduction.
Bedbug habitat:
- under the bark of trees;
- on stumps;
- in piles of dry grass and leaves;
- at the foundations of houses, baths, gazebos and other outbuildings;
- in the fence and its foundation.
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During hibernation, insects are found under heaps of garbage, in humus, in trees - under the bark or in hollows.
Preventive methods
To prevent the appearance of soldier bugs, you can take the following measures:
- Planting on a cohosh plot. Translated from Latin, the plant is called black cohosh. The smell of flowers repels insects, and they try to immigrate away from it. It is convenient to plant the plant around the perimeter of the site. You can also use other plants: wormwood, mustard.
- Plant grape bushes and other cultivated plants away from alfalfa and legumes, which are especially loved by soldier bugs.
- Destruction of weeds on the site. Weed your garden in a timely manner. As the grass grows, the number of pests increases, as does the number of eggs laid. If possible, burn the grass as there may be larvae on the leaves.
- If there is a lawn on the site, the height of the grass should be as minimal as the type of cover allows.
- Do not leave heaps of garbage or fallen leaves on the site - the favorite habitats of red bugs.
- If there are rotten and old stumps, it is necessary to uproot them and burn them.
Soldier bugs reproduce quickly and can cause significant damage to cultivated plants. At the same time, they have a thin chitinous cover and a poorly developed nervous system, so they are easy to destroy. Carrying out preventive measures will protect the area from insect infestation.
Interesting facts about red bugs
Beetles (not really, but many people call them that) with black dots are distinguished by their original color and unusual habits (for example, when mating). Other interesting factors:
- bedbugs are not loners, they gather in groups, sometimes the number reaches several hundred;
- if you scare away an insect, a slight unpleasant odor will appear, this is a defensive reaction and a way of communication between brothers;
- due to the color scheme, the pest is often mistaken for individuals of other species;
- life expectancy is shorter than that of many bugs (for example, bed bugs or tree bugs) - from 6 to 12 months.
The number of Cossacks can reach enormous proportions
Signs
Some features of the life activity of soldiers are used as an omen of various events: large-scale and not so large-scale. Signs:
- if an insect managed to cross the road in front of a person (for example, in a park), one can expect good luck and improved well-being;
- From ancient times, a sign has come down to us that has a negative meaning: if you crush a soldier, this may mean that a fire will soon occur; this interpretation of the event is due to the fact that the insect was previously considered the guardian of well-being.
Sources
- https://wildfauna.ru/zhuk-pozharnik
- https://fishki.net/3785717-klop-soldatik-i-interesnye-fakty-o-nyom.html
- https://TaraKlop.ru/klopy/klop-soldatik-kak-izbavitsya/
- https://misterklop.ru/vrediteli-ogoroda/klop-soldatik-foto-zhuka-opisanie-sposoby-izbavleniya
- https://kloptarget.ru/klopy/vidy-klopov/klop-soldatik.html
- https://animalzoom.ru/klop-soldatik
- https://masterklop.ru/klop-soldatik-i-metody-borby-s-nim/
- https://klopec.ru/klopy/klop-soldatik-kak-vyglyadit-prinosit-vred-ili-polzu-krasnyy-kusaetsya-kak-izbavitsya
- https://KlopVred.ru/klopy/klop-soldatik/
- https://FB.ru/article/45315/klop-soldatik-vreditel-sadovyih-i-ogorodnyih-rasteniy
- https://prusakam.net/zhuk-soldatik/
- https://www.parazitty.ru/klopi/klopi-soldatiki-i-ih-foto/
Prevention
The invasion of these pests can be easily avoided. You just need to prepare the site in advance and follow a few simple rules. Firstly, it is very important to remove weeds in a timely manner and trim the lawn at least once a month; it is advisable to burn all cut and torn grass in order to avoid the spread of the bug, if there are already ovipositors in the grass.
Secondly, it is necessary to uproot old stumps, because this is where the Cossack often settles. You also need to install a fishing belt at the base of the trees in advance. It is necessary to plant legumes separately from other crops, as they often become the starting point of infection, since they are a refuge for Cossacks during the harsh winter months. It is also worth treating the wintering areas of these insects annually with an insecticide (you can use dichlorvos).
