''Orius niger'' is a

true bug Hemiptera (; ) is an order of insects, commonly called true bugs, comprising over 80,000 species within groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, assassin bugs, bed bugs, and shield bugs. They range in size from to arou ...

. The species is found in the

Palearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Si ...

from Europe east to

Siberia Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part o ...

and across

Central Asia Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes the former ...

to China and India. It is widespread in

Central Europe Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the ...

mostly in the south. In the Alps it is found up 1600 meters above sea level. ''Orius niger'' lives in the herbaceous layer feeding on

Boraginaceae Boraginaceae, the borage or forget-me-not family, includes about 2,000 species of shrubs, trees and herbs in 146, to 156 genera with a worldwide distribution. The APG IV system from 2016 classifies the Boraginaceae as single family of the orde ...

Ericaceae The Ericaceae are a family of flowering plants, commonly known as the heath or heather family, found most commonly in acidic and infertile growing conditions. The family is large, with c.4250 known species spread across 124 genera, making it th ...

and Fabaceae, but also on stinging nettles ''

Urtica ''Urtica'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Urticaceae. Many species have stinging hairs and may be called nettles or stinging nettles, although the latter name applies particularly to '' Urtica dioica''. ''Urtica'' species are food ...

'' and '' Artemisia''. The imago overwinters in loose ground litter, under bark scales or on stems or dried flowers. Most males die over the winter. The females lay their eggs in flowers of herbaceous plants. In favourable years there are two generations. In laboratory conditions, the larval development of ''Orius niger'' takes 14 days at a temperature of 25 °C; females have a longevity of 60 days and can lay up to 150 eggs.Jean-Lou Justine (1978) ontribution to the study of the influence of alimentation on the development and reproduction of ''Orius niger'' Wolff, 1811 (Heteroptera: Anthocoridae)Contribution à l'étude de l'influence de l'alimentation sur le développement et la reproduction d’''Orius niger'' Wolff, 1811 (Heteroptera : Anthocoridae). Masters Thesis, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France, 92 pages n French with English abstract

References

Hemiptera of Asia Hemiptera of Europe Anthocoridae Insects described in 1811 {{Cimicomorpha-stub