i've had a few of these, on and off, for several years now. i think they must be good ones because i never see any damage to plants where they congregate. this one was resting on a daylily this morning. interesting white dot in the middle of the back and i really like the black and white on legs and antenna.
This a black stink bug; Proxys punctulatus (Hemiptera/Heteroptera: Pentatomidae - see http://www.pbase.com/tmurray74/image/84867826 - according to the article at http://entnem.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/bugs/black_stink_bug.htm, they "...appear to be facultative feeders on plants and other insects."
thank you so much, suunto. apparently they do not exist in large numbers and since, in the past, it has not damaged anything that i can see, these bugs can stay.
This kind of stink bug is really nasty and causes "sucker" type of marks on my cactus. They can get really big (about the size of a large cockroach) and fly. They seem to start out green and the little varmits will congregate on my cactus pads and then they leave the sucker mark, and if untreated, will kill the plant (for me at least). The only thing that kills them is Raid in the red can. Works Great!!
i don't think you and i have the same insect. these stay black and about this size. omg, i would never use raid in the garden. i have organic products that work really well and don't harm the plant.
trackinsand -- organic only goes so far. Raid doesn't hurt the cactus, they are pretty tough hombres...
i understand your statement that organics only go so far. i use mostly organics but occasionally use stronger stuff. it's just that raid, unless they make a garden raid, would be my last choice. stinkbugs are easily dispatched with liquid castile soap and water. there are far harder things than stinkbugs to kill.
