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The boxelder bug (Boisea trivittata) is a common insect and household pest in the United States. Adult boxelder bugs are about half of an inch long, and have distinctive red markings along their back (as pictured below).

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Primarily, the boxelder bug interacts with the boxelder tree (thus its name). The boxelder bug feeds on the tree's seeds and lays its eggs on (or at least near) the tree. Rarely, boxelder bugs may feed on other, similar types of trees. Boxelder bugs are not known to cause significant harm to the plants on which they feed. During the spring and summer, the boxelder bug usually stays near an appropriate tree for feeding and laying eggs. They are also known to "sun themselves," which is a behavior in which they rest on a surface that is in the sun's warmth--sort of like a dog or cat, except boxelder bugs usually do it on a wall, outside. During the fall and winter, the boxelder bug finds somewhere warm to "overwinter" (similar to hibernating in bears, for instance). These places of warmth can be (and commonly are) human housing. Boxelder bugs do not lay eggs while overwintering in houses. Boxelder bugs are not known to bite humans, though it has been reported before.

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One of the boxelder bug's interesting adaptive traits is their ability to secrete a foul-smelling and foul-tasting compound when disturbed. This defensive ability, paired with their bright stripes, leads other animals to believe that they are poisonous. As a result, boxelder bugs can be seen outdoors in large, conspicuous groups.

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The adaptation I propose is for the boxelder bug to secrete an additional toxin from its wings--where the red markings are now. This new poison is actually harmful to predators, but is scentless and tasteless (fooling predators into thinking the harmful substance is the one they can already secrete--the nontoxic one). This change could come about as the result of a mutation in the genes of the cells that form the wings, which alters their function to that of producing poison. These new, mutant boxelder bugs can still fly, but not for as long, due to the extra poison weighing them down. A boxelder bug with my mutation is in the picture attatched to this post.

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Kingdom: Animalia (Animals)

Phylum: Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Class: Insecta (Insects)

Order: Hemiptera (True Bugs)

Suborder: Heteroptera (Typical Bugs)

Superfamily: Coreoidea (Leaf-footed Bugs and Allies)

Family: Rhopalidae (Scentless Plant Bugs)

Subfamily: Serinethinae (Soapberry Bugs)

Genus: Boisea (Boxelder Bugs)

Species: Boisea Trivittata (Eastern North American Boxelder Bug)

Rhopalidae fossils have been discovered. The oldest known are thought to be from the Middle Jurassic period. It is likely that these fossils are relatives of the boxelder bug.

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http://www.cirrusimage.com/bugs_box_elder.htm

http://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/insects/find/boxelder-bugs/

http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05522.html

http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74114.html

http://ento.psu.edu/extension/factsheets/boxelder-bug

http://extension.usu.edu/files/publications/factsheet/boxelder-bug10.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxelder_bug

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthropod

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemiptera

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heteroptera

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coreoidea

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhopalidae

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serinethinae

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boisea