Gross, look what I found!!!

[bellabasenji]

I was in the driveway yesterday and found a large, ugly bug. We had no idea what it was… beetle, roach, ???? We tried to find out by searching the web... No luck. Finally we asked a friend of ours who used to teach Biology. It is a Giant Water Bug and I just set it free about an hour ago! Disgusting creature, but fascinating... I'm glad it didn't get the chance to bite us or Bella (at first we didn't know it has a painful bite that can cause swelling and possible temporary - to permanent paralysis!!!). These critters can be around two inches long, yuck! Oh, and they have wings and can fly, eat other bugs and even small fish, and live in slow moving water.

Note: You could even find these bugs in your house if you let your dogs romp in ponds, lakes or pools. They will hitch a ride on animal fur and come right on in. Protect your feet, and check your animals well after they swim in ponds.

I know most of us don't let the dogs swim in ponds... but just in case!!!

[khanis]

These were all over when I lived in Delaware.
They scattered when I would turn on the lights in the middle of the night. At first I thought they were roaches and I was freaked out.
Still, they are totally gross!

[Ninabeana26]

Ewww. Thanks for the information! Definitely a good thing to know, especially with summer coming up :)

[snorky998]

WOW, I don't think we have them here. We have water skimmers but they look nothing like that. That looks like a roach on steroids:eek: