Hawthorn Shieldbug

The Hawthorn Shieldbug is a distinctive shieldbug. It is the largest in Britain and one of the commonest. It has a green body, covered in tiny black dots and red-orange markings, red-brown eyes and black antennae.

It is generally active between April and October, feeding mainly on hawthorn berries, but will feed on various deciduous trees inlcuding oak, whitebeam, hazel, rowan, cotoneaster and birch.

The Hawthorn Shieldbug overwinters as an adult, although they have been known to reappear from hibernation during periods of unseasonable warm weather in the winter. They then re-emerge to breed in the spring. The nymphs appear in May and can be seen through to October. They feed mainly on hawthorn berries, but also feed on various deciduous trees, like the adults. The new generation of adults appear in August and September. Some adults may become darker in colour before hibernation. but adults can overwinter on a diet of leaves,

Common and widespread in mixed woodlands across Britain, though somewhat scarcer in Scotland.