First off, sorry about the low quality photo. We found this guy at work, not in the garden. I have never seen anything like it. It used it's front tentacles/pinchers to aid in walking. It appeared to have wings and a hard shell. I was thinking something in the roach family, but it only had 4 legs not including the front tentacles. Any ideas?
possibly this: http://bugguide.net/node/view/219026/bgpage
This is a giant water bug (Hemiptera/Heteroptera: Belostomatidae). Also known as to biters and electric light bugs, these are voracious predators on other aquatic insects as well as tadpoles and the occasional careless minnow. Their front legs are raptorial, adapted for grasping and holding prey tightly while it inserts its beak to liquefy and then suck out the contents of its victim. The proteolytic enzymes it injects can also result in a very painful (but not dangerous) bite should you handle one of these carelessly. See http://tinyurl.com/ybm57ao for the proper way to hold one of these. They also are excellent fliers, and often are found quite some distance from any water source.
I obviously should have looked for a much larger bug.....grin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belostomatidae it is.
Thanks for the help guys!
