Woundwort Shieldbug

We thought we were looking at seeds till they moved! These young (final instar) nymphs are on the HAHA wildlife plot which has a large amount of woundwort. Nearly every spent flowerhead has a gathering of these tiny young bugs.

The adult woundwort shieldbug is a copper-coloured classic shield-shaped bug; I hope to see some in a couple of weeks.

If you ever need to know more about shieldbugs (and other true bugs) then you must visit the BRITISHBUGS.ORG.UK site. It’s fabulous, with so many photos.

Shieldbugs are in the Pentatomidae family of bugs. The nymphs look significantly different from the adults and often have interesting patterns.

These tiny bugs are no threat on the allotment as they are only interested in the sap of woundwort and deadnettle. By the way, this is what woundwort looks like in flower.