---
title: "Four-spurred Assassin Bug"
description: "Zelus tetracanthus — Insetos e aranhas. Zelus tetracanthus, the four-spurred assassin bug, is a species of assassin bug in the family Reduviidae."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/pt/animal/four-spurred-assassin-bug
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Four-spurred Assassin Bug

> Zelus tetracanthus — Insetos e aranhas. Zelus tetracanthus, the four-spurred assassin bug, is a species of assassin bug in the family Reduviidae.

- Scientific name: *Zelus tetracanthus*
- Category: `insects` (Insetos e aranhas)
- Habitats: unknown
- iNaturalist observations: 7912
- Wikidata: [Q10724448](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q10724448)
- iNaturalist taxon: [334038](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/334038)

## Names

- en: Four-spurred Assassin Bug
- es: Chinche asesina de cuatro espuelas
- fr: Réduve à quatre pointes

## Countries with the most observations

US (5178), CA (353), MX (262), BR (22), CO (7), HN (5)

## Summary

Zelus tetracanthus, the four-spurred assassin bug, is a species of assassin bug in the family Reduviidae. It is found in the Caribbean Sea, Central America, North America, and South America. Adults are brown, black, or gray and have a body length of 10–16 mm. Their antennae and legs are long and slender. They have a row of four spurs across their thorax. Both adults and nymphs use a sticky secretion to capture prey.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zelus_tetracanthus

## Photo

![Four-spurred Assassin Bug](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/four-spurred-assassin-bug/medium.jpg)

Photo: Theo Summer · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/184803685

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/four-spurred-assassin-bug?lang=pt` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).