🔥 Thasus neocalifornicus (Red Nymph)

Common Name: Giant Mesquite Bug

Region: Sonoran Desert (U.S. & Mexico)

Appearance: Bold red body with white stripes, black legs, and bluish wing stubs—vivid aposematic coloring to ward off predators.

Size: Nymphs grow through five instars; adults reach up to 2 inches

Habitat: Arizona, Baja California Sur, Sonora, and Sinaloa; lives on mesquite trees

Behavior: Nymphs are flightless and cluster in groups; adults can fly

Feeding: Sap-feeders—targeting leaves, seed pods, and bark of mesquite trees

Taxonomy: Family Coreidae | Genus Thasus

Defense Mechanism: Nymphs secrete noxious chemicals as deterrents

Life Cycle: Univoltine; eggs overwinter and hatch January–July; five nymphal stages precede adulthood