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| Photo: Kimberly Sheahan |
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| Photo of adult cactus bug by Lyle Buss, University of Florida |
I love this time of year because my xeriscape yard is in bloom. I recently signed up to be a citizen volunteer for the Native Bee Watch (you can check out more information here if you’re interested https://arapahoe.extension.colostate.edu/nbw/#theproject). As part of my new interest in bees, I’ve been photographing them as they pollinate the cacti in my yard. Today I noticed something odd on one of my opuntia sp. pads (prickly pear), it looked like it had a weird growth of extra spines.
As I observed them for a moment, trying to sort out what was on the pad it started to move! I zoomed in with my camera to get a picture of whatever this insect was. Lo and behold I had a bunch of Chelinidea vittiger aequoris nymphs (prickly pear cactus bugs) enjoying a tasty meal. Since these ones are in the nymph stage of development all I could see from a distance was their dark legs which appeared as spines to me.
If you have prickly pear’s in your yard you may notice these insects, they will typically feed in colonies rather than independently. One way to spot them is to look for discoloration on the prickly pear joints, as you can see in the photo above.
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| Photo of Adult: Kimberly Sheahan |
Both nymph and adult forms of these bugs (and yes, they are “true” bugs) use special structures to pierce the tough leaves and suck the sap from the pad. Their feeding punctures cause circular, chlorotic lesions and the pads turn yellow.
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| Photo: Kimberly Sheahan |
Luckily, their impact is most often negligible. If you would like to control their population search for inactive bugs during cold weather under debris at the base of the cactus plants or under prostrate joints. They also move fairly slowly and you can simply remove the pad they are on to dispose of the bugs. If the pad is not overly damaged you can let it develop roots and then re-plant it.
For more information on the adult bug, and also information about their use as a biocontrol agent where the cacti are considered a severe weed problem:
Adult Bug , Prickly Pear Cactus
Adult Bug , Prickly Pear Cactus
