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Sticker of Anchor stink bug
Bug card No. 0095 of 4,939

Anchor stink bug

Stiretrus anchorago
Eats: Other bugs and small animalsTrue bugs and cicadasGardens and meadows6 legs

The anchor stink bug is a shield shaped bug that hunts other insects instead of eating plants. Its markings change a lot from bug to bug, so no two look quite the same. It lives in North and Central America.

Lives in
North and Central America
Top speed
about 0.2 km/h (0.12 mph)
On foot, estimate
Can it hurt you?
Harmless
Harmless. Like other stink bugs, it can make a bad smell if you pick it up.
What does it eat?
It hunts other insects, such as Mexican bean beetles and alfalfa weevils.
For real!Photo of Anchor stink bug
Picture by xpda. CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

How fast is it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

It eats Mexican bean beetles and alfalfa weevils, two insects that farmers are not happy to see.

2

Its markings vary so much that two anchor stink bugs can look like different bugs.

3

There are five different kinds of it, called subspecies.

you asked

Most asked questions about Anchor stink bug

?What does the anchor stink bug eat?

Other insects. It hunts beetles and weevils that eat farm plants.

?Is the anchor stink bug dangerous?

No. It may make a bad smell if you touch it, but it is harmless.

For bug experts

Scientific name
Stiretrus anchorago
Named by
Fabricius, 1775
Group
True bugs and cicadas
Family
Pentatomidae
Classification
Insecta > Hemiptera > Pentatomidae
Lives on
North America

Where the facts come from

  1. Stiretrus anchorago (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
  2. Picture by xpda. CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.

If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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