Juniper shield bug
Species of true bug
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The juniper shield bug (Cyphostethus tristriatus), (family: Acanthosomatidae), is a large (9–10.5 mm) green shield bug with distinctive pinkish-red markings on the corium.[1]
| Juniper shield bug | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hemiptera |
| Suborder: | Heteroptera |
| Family: | Acanthosomatidae |
| Genus: | Cyphostethus |
| Species: | C. tristriatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Cyphostethus tristriatus (Fieber, 1860) | |
The bug's traditional foodplant is juniper, with the larvae feeding on juniper berries.[1] It has also adapted to use Lawson cypress[1](Chamaecyparis spp.[2]) as a host. In the United Kingdom it was formerly scarce[2] and restricted largely to southern juniper woodlands but in recent years it has become common across southern and central England as a result of the widespread garden planting of juniper and cypress.[1] Recent discoveries on stands of juniper in northern England and Scotland suggest that the range of the species may be extending.[1]
The juniper shield bug is active for most of the year apart from the coldest months.[1] It overwinters as an adult, emerging to mate in the early spring.[1] New adults may be found from late August onwards.[1]
