scentless plant bug

5946   I’ve seen a lot of these beetles in my house. They are about 1/4 inch long.  I’m in BC, the south Okanagan.

I cannot be absolutely certain, but I believe that this is a scentless plant bug (Hemiptera/Heteroptera: Rhopalidae); see http://tinyurl.com/kvfdkko for an example. These basically are nuisance pests that seldom cause any real harm. I do not know why these bugs are called ‘scentless,’ as some, like boxelder bugs, have a definite and not terribly pleasant, odor. Ed Saugstad, retired entomologist; Sinks Grove, WV.