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Hi Maggie,

I hope all is well with you and your garden, and that you've been enjoying the wonderful weather.

I've got a critter here that I was wondering if you recognized. Is he an assassin bug of some sort? I've looked in several bug books but haven't found him yet.

http://www.aogc.org/calendar/bug1.jpg

Hi Angie, Looking for your critter, I discovered that there are so many different-looking Hemiptera species tagged as 'assassin bugs' and wonderfully, all attributed with the same beneficial bad-bug appetite.

I went thru my books too, then surfed up these web pics...
from Kendall Bioresearch, UK.

This assassin bug image from MDA State.

Here's what TAMU posts as an assassin bug.
as well as this one

Here was the best page I could find with a good assortment.
The Zelus exsanguis, appears to be what HG illustrates as the assassin bug

In my garden, I have seen both the 'wheel bug' kind and the one that looks like your image.
And there I was crediting our resident birds for having taken such good care of us from the recent grasshopper plagues. They must have had a lot of help from the creepy critters too.
Cool. Thanks Angie for taking me for a spin 'round assassin's row :-)

Here's one from my garden that I've been trying to track down ...

Anyone know this guy????

Wow, thanks for the great links! My bug sure does look like the wheel bug nymph shown on the last link. The young guys always look just different enough from the adults that it's hard to tell: I've looked in three books already.

That guy (gal? is she laying eggs?) in your garden sure has a wicked looking beak -- I wonder if it's for use on other bugs? Sure is vividly colored...nice photo!