Firebug

5980  I have been seeing this particular black and fire red insect around my home and my community. It has destroyed/eaten all my plants and I cannot seem to  do anything to get rid of them.  Can you tell me what this bug is and if it  is harmful to have inside my Home or is it dangerous in any other way? I  have a small toddler who likes to play in the rocks but my rocks are filled  with hundreds of these bugs.

This is a firebug, Pyrrhocoris apterus (Hemiptera/Heteroptera: Pyrrhocoridae). Something else likely is destroying your plants, as these insects reportedly feed primarily on seeds of members of the mallow and lime families – see http://tinyurl.com/kdbrpn8. They tend to form dense aggregations in the spring, and a person seeing those could presume that they were causing damage. They also pose no danger to humans. Ed Saugstad, retired entomologist; Sinks Grove, WV.