Annoying little reddish brown bugs - Ask Extension
What are these little reddish brown flying insects? About 2mm long, 2 segments, hardshell, and too small to discern other details. They come out aro...
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Annoying little reddish brown bugs #651978
Asked June 16, 2020, 9:11 PM EDT
What are these little reddish brown flying insects? About 2mm long, 2 segments, hardshell, and too small to discern other details. They come out around dusk as of late spring and have no sense of self preservation. Outdoors only. They don't seem to be affected by bug repellant or citronella. It's hard to tell if they actually bite or make me itch to have them on my skin.
Bucks County Pennsylvania
Expert Response
That's some kind of bark or ambrosia beetle. Most species feed on stressed, dying, or dead trees, but some invasive species can colonize apparently healthy trees as well. They're often attracted to ethanol (which is produced by stressed, dying, and recently dead trees), so may come to alcoholic drinks. If you're seeing loads of them, there is likely an invested tree in the vicinity. The best control would be to remove the tree or infested wood.
Bark and ambrosia beetles don't bite people and aren't medically important.
