The Boxelder bugs stay outdoors during spring and summer where they feed and reproduce.
During fall and winter, they relocate to find shelter from the cold season. The bugs usually last until a few days or a week during this time. Surviving bugs leave their shelter during the beginning of spring to again feed and reproduce. Nymphs that can be seen during fall cannot last until the winter and only adult bugs can survive after the cold season. The Boxelder bug’s lifecycle is considered an incomplete metamorphosis in three stages. First are the eggs, the eggs of the bug starts from orange in color, then turns into red as days pass. The bugs lay their eggs on the host plant and it usually spends 11- 19 days before it hatches. Nymphs, who are usually present at fall, starts as red, then turns darker to dark red, until the reach dark brown or black. Last is the adult stage where the boxelder bugs would feed and then eventually reproduce during summer. The cycle would repeat after the next generation is born.