Green shield bug
The green shield bug is a flat, bright green bug shaped like a little knight's shield. In autumn it slowly changes colour to brownish bronze, like the leaves around it. It is very common in gardens all over Europe.
How fast is it?
Fun facts
It sleeps through the winter as a grown-up, hidden in the soil and dead leaves.
The mother lays her eggs in neat six-sided groups of 25 to 30.
The babies stay together in sibling groups, held together by a special smell. Another smell tells them to scatter when danger comes.
The babies change colour as they grow: light brown, black or green and black.
It lives far up into northern Europe, all the way to 63 degrees north.
Most asked questions about Green shield bug
?Is the green shield bug harmful?
No. It does not bite or sting, and it is harmless to people.
?Why does the green shield bug turn brown?
Its colour changes from green to brownish bronze in late summer and autumn, getting ready for winter.
?What does the green shield bug eat?
It sucks sap from plants, like apple, pear and hazelnut trees.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Palomena prasina
- Group
- True bugs and cicadas
- Family
- Pentatomidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Hemiptera > Pentatomidae
- Lives on
- Europe, Asia
Where the facts come from
- Green shield bug (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Charles J. Sharp. CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. The round sticker of this bug is cut from the same 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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