Blissus leucopterus

Blissus leucopterus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Suborder: Heteroptera
Family: Blissidae
Genus: Blissus
Species:
B. leucopterus
Binomial name
Blissus leucopterus
(Say, 1832)[1]
Synonyms
  • Lygaeus leucopterus Say, 1832

Blissus leucopterus, also known as the true[clarification needed] chinch bug, is a small North American insect in the order Hemiptera and family Blissidae.[2] It is the most commonly encountered species of the genus Blissus, which are all known as chinch bugs. A closely related species is B. insularis, the southern chinch bug.

The name of the chinch bug is derived from the Spanish chinche, which refers to the bed bug and is in turn derived from the Latin cimex. The chinch bug is not related to the bed bug, but took this name on account of producing a similar smell to that of bed bugs when crushed.[3]

These bugs tend to gather on sunny, open patches of turfgrass. Due to their small size, chinch bugs are hardly noticeable, so they become problems, since they are considered pests that feed on stems of turfgrass [4][5] and grain crops.[6]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Say was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Henry was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference OED was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Hairy Chinch Bugs in Lawns". Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  5. ^ "Chinch Bugs in Home Lawns". PennState College of Agricultural Sciences. Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  6. ^ "IPM: Field Crops: Chinch Bug". Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences. Retrieved 16 December 2014.