Fig 1.
Three species of kissing bugs commonly found in Texas.
(Left to right) Triatoma protracta, the most common species in the western U.S.; Triatoma gerstaeckeri, the most common species in Texas; Triatoma sanguisuga, the most common species in the eastern U.S. Scale bar represents 25mm or approximately 1 inch.
Table 1.
Triatomine species, proportion encountered inside homes, and T. cruzi infection prevalence in bugs submitted to the Texas Citizen Science kissing bug program, 2013–2014.
Fig 2.
Historical and current collections from across Texas.
A) States from which our program received kissing bugs in 2013–2014 overlaid on historical state-level records of kissing bugs throughout the U.S. [5,29]; B) Historical county-level records of kissing bugs in Texas (1928–2006, as from [11]) and submissions of kissing bugs through our citizen science program (2013–2014).
Fig 3.
Kissing bug collection phenology.
Seasonal occurrence of the collection of kissing bugs by citizens, 2013–2014.
Fig 4.
Number of daily emails to kissingbug@cvm.tamu.edu from the public, 2014. Peaks generally correspond with a media event featuring Chagas disease and/or kissing bugs: A) July 17/18, Amarillo, Texas newscast and National Public Radio website article; B) July 24, articles about Chagas disease in Virginia; C) July 27, USA Today online article; D) August 2, Arkansas newscast; E) August 11, Cat Channel online article; F) August 18, Lubbock, Texas newscast. The regular pattern of decreasing and increasing activity (most noticeable throughout September) corresponds with weekends and weekdays, respectively.
Fig 5.
Key features of non-kissing bugs.
Key morphologic features distinguish similar-looking insects: (A) Gray color and dorsal crest of wheel bugs (Arilus cristatus) (B) Wide, flattened back legs of leaf-footed bugs (Leptoglossus sp.) (C) Short head of squash bugs (Mozena sp.) (D) Close view of mouthparts of a kissing bug (left; thin and straight) and non-kissing bug (right; thick and curved); Photos courtesy of M. Merchant (A), P. Porter (B, C), and R. Bardin (D).