Red-legged Shieldbug

These shield bugs are between 11 and 14mm in length. Their large brown bodies and bright orange legs make identification easy (even if they land on a red jumper). (Photo credit: Ang White.)
This species has been sponsored by: 
Angela White

Species introduction

At a glance
Latin name: 
Pentatoma rufipes
Family: 
Shield bugs
Family Latin name: 
Pentatomidae
Category: 
Insects other
Vernacular names: 

Forest Bug

Species description

Species description

These shield bugs are between 11 and 14mm in length. Their large brown bodies and bright orange legs make identification easy (even if they land on a red jumper). The paler-coloured spot on the tip of the scutellum varies from orange to red to cream.

This species feeds mainly on Oak, Hazel and Alder. Adults can feed on caterpillars as well as fruit. Eggs appear to be laid in August.

Species photographs

Larger photograph(s) (click to magnify)
These shield bugs are between 11 and 14mm in length. Their large brown bodies and bright orange legs make identification easy (even if they land on a red jumper).

Details

Species family information

Most members of this family are plant feeders, and the cemetery is therefore very good habitat for them. The family name comes from the appearance of a five-sided body.

Category information

Insects evolved in the Ordovician from a crustacean ancestral lineage as terrestrial invertebrates with six legs (the Hexapoda). This was the time when terrestrial plants first appeared. In the Devonian some insects developed wings and flight, the first animals to do so. An early flying group was the Odonata from the Carboniferous, the damselflies and dragonflies, which have densely-veined wings and long, ten-segmented bodies. They are day-flying carnivores, with an aquatic larval stage, so are commonly seen flying near water. The carnivorous larvae are called nymphs. Odonata species are short-lived, damselflies surviving for 2-4 weeks, dragonflies for up to 2 months.

Some insect groups in the Cretaceous co-evolved with the flowering plants, and they have had a close association ever since. These groups are the Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, and ants), the Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), the Diptera (flies), and the Coleoptera (beetles). The diversity of beetles is astonishing. Of all the known animal species on the planet, one in five is a beetle!