Western Boxelder Bug Macro Photo

In early April the skies are filled with kamikaze Boxelder bugs en mass. Ok, maybe not the skies, but there are a lot of them buzzing around approximately 2 meters off the ground. They seem to fly rather unguided and clumsily until they run into a broad surface like my house. It wasn’t difficult to find one to photograph; they were clinging to my garage door, house siding and wood fence. They’re wary though, and you have to quickly walk up and place a container over them to catch one. They’re only around in numbers for a few days after they emerge, then become less frequent after they’ve dispersed. I love the sinister red and black color scheme of this bug, and its red eyes. This bug surely listens to Swedish Death Metal when he’s not busy sucking sap out of plant stems with his proboscis. The aposomatic coloration is probably to deter predators because he releases a foul tasting chemical if bothered (though all Stinkbug relatives can do this, but most don’t have warning colors). Speaking of proboscises, in the photo below I tried to take a profile photo to show the bug’s long proboscis, which folds to tuck beneath the body. It’s a harpoon that otherwise folds out in front of the body to jab into plant stems.

 

The image above is my inaugural photo with my new Olympus E-M5 II. Without this turning into a review, this astoundingly advanced camera allowed me to take 35 handheld images in rapid succession that stacked perfectly. On the micro four thirds sensor, the 60mm macro lens produces the equivalent of 2:1 magnification on a full frame sensor! You can find them here:
Olympus OM-D E-M5 II
Olympus Zuiko 60mm Macro Lens