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Family Pentatomidae - Stink Bugs
Classification Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Hemiptera (True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies)
Suborder Heteroptera (True Bugs)
Family Pentatomidae (Stink Bugs)
Other Common Names Shield Bugs (a name not recommended because it more commonly refers to the family Acanthosomatidae) Explanation of Names PENTATOMIDAE: from the Greek "pente" (five) + "tomos" (a section); perhaps a reference to the 5-segmented antennae, or perhaps a reference to the body, which, when viewed from above, appears to be divided into 5 large sections: a pronotum, a scutellum, two basal leathery portions of hemelytra [one on each side of the scutellum], and two apical membranous portions of hemelytra that completely overlap and seem like a single "section"
STINK BUG: Pentatomids produce odors from thoracic glands for self-defense Numbers 221 species in 61 genera in North America ( nearctica.com) Identification Characteristics of family:
broad, shield-shaped bugs
large, triangular scutellum;
head relatively small and often "tucked into" a concavity in anterior margin of pronotum;
body (as viewed from above) apparently divided into 5 sections, as described in the Explanation of Names section above Range most of North America and the world Habitat fields, meadows, yards & gardens on herbaceous plants and low shrubs Season spring through fall (overwinters as an adult under ground cover or leaf litter) Food Both adults and nymphs of plant-feeding species are capable of injuring plants. Feeding damage is caused when they insert their piercing-sucking mouthparts into the plant, inject digestive enzymes, extract plant juices and allow entry of pathogenic microorganisms. The majority of stink bugs found in North America are plant-feeding species. However, there are many predaceous species, several of which are commonly encountered in the field preying on other insects. [text originally copied from University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, whose link is now dead]. Life Cycle Stink bugs characteristically deposit their eggs on the underside of leaves in clusters with tight rows of individual barrel-shaped eggs. After overwintering, adult females seek out suitable hosts in early spring and typically deposit their eggs on wild host plants. Often these overwintering populations are found along field borders, particularly along tree lines near their overwintering sites. Later-developing cultivated plants become more attractive when these initial wild hosts dry down, and their proximity allows easy access for stink bug colonization in crops. Shortly after egg deposition and hatching, emerging nymphs are gregarious in habit and remain on or near the egg mass. As they develop, they begin to feed and disperse. The life cycle is repeated when reproductively mature adult stink bugs locate mates and deposit new egg masses. [text originally copied from University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, whose link is now dead].
Stink bugs nymphs go through five stages of growth, called instars. You can view an example of the instars on the University of Kentucky web site listed below. Remarks Stink bugs are sometimes serious agricultural pests, in particular when they attack developing fruits and nuts, which can quickly be ruined for commercial purposes by an infestation.
See this University of Florida site for instructions on making a trap to monitor the stink bug population, and details on which species are most injurious to crops.
Family Pentatomidae
Genera Codophila, Coenus, Cosmopepla, Euschistus, Holcostethus, Hymenarcys, Menecles, Mormidea, Oebalus, Prionosoma, Proxys, Trichopepla
Print References Slater and Baranowski, pp. 40-56 (1).
Works Cited | 1. | How to Know the True Bugs
By Slater, James A., and Baranowski, Richard M. | |
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