Bug FAQDeraeocoris brevis
Deraeocoris brevis · Order: Hemiptera · Family: Miridae
Adult Deraeocoris brevis are tiny, measuring about three to six millimetres long. Both adults and nymphs hunt other insects such as spider mites, aphids and scale insects, helping control orchard pests. They live in North American orchards and a variety of trees and shrubs, including apple, pear, service berry and many pines.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Nymphs look mottled pale grey with dark spots that give a speckled appearance.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults range from three to six millimetres in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They are found in apple and pear orchards where they feed on plant pests. They also shelter in many other trees and shrubs such as service berry, tobacco brush, mountain mahogany and various pines.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
If insect prey are scarce, they can feed on plant tissue without causing serious damage.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
D. brevis undergoes incomplete metamorphosis, developing through five nymphal stages after the eggs hatch.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults spend the winter hidden in cracks and crevices. In spring, females lay eggs on host trees near buds, and in summer they insert eggs into leaf midribs.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
The species is native to North America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 13 of 51 states and DC. Most records: California, Oregon, Utah, Idaho, New Mexico, Washington, Colorado, Nevada.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
How big are adult Deraeocoris brevis?
Adults are about three to six millimetres long.
Source: Wikipedia
Where are Deraeocoris brevis found?
They are native to North America and live in apple and pear orchards as well as many other trees and shrubs.
Source: Wikipedia
When do they lay their eggs?
Females lay eggs on host trees in spring and insert them into leaf tissue during summer.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Miridae)
North American Tarnished Plant BugLygus lineolarisDamages trees, gardens or crops
Red-spotted Plant BugDeraeocoris ruber
Alfalfa Plant BugAdelphocoris lineolatusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Meadow Plant BugLeptopterna dolabrataDamages trees, gardens or crops
Four-lined Plant BugPoecilocapsus lineatusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Lygus pratensisDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deraeocoris_brevis
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-26 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-26.