Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
formerly Pitedia
Numbers
19 species in North America (
nearctica.com)
Identification
appearance varies but most species have broadly oval body, often green (may change to brownish or grayish with age), with pale whitish or yellow margin on pronotum and elytra; scutellum long & triangular, sometimes with 3 callosities (bumps) along base, and the tip usually pale or contrasting in color; membrane at apex of forewing often clear or translucent
Range
represented throughout US and southern Canada but mostly a western genus (only 4 or 5 of the 19 species occur in the east: dismalia, persimilis, saucia, senilis and possibly sayi)
Food
nymphs and adults feed on a variety of herbaceous plants, crops, and fruit trees (can become a commercial pest)
See Also
The bodies of Acrosternum (Chinavia) and Nezara species are more elongate, the tips of their elytra are more pointed, and they lack a conspicuous pale margin on the pronotum and elytra.
Internet References
pinned adult image of
C. persimilis (Insects of Cedar Creek, Minnesota)
occurrence of
C. dismalia in
Virginia and
North Carolina
occurrence of
C. persimilis in
Maine,
Quebec, and
Michigan
occurrence of
C. saucia, senilis in
Connecticut, and
North Carolina
