Hemiptera

Dog-day cicadas are large insects with highly characteristic shapes and bodies that are twice as long as they are wide. They are 27 to 33 mm long, with wingspans of up to 82 mm. Their bodies are mostly dark with green and black markings on the upper side of the thorax. The veins at the base of the long transparent wings are also green. Significant colour variations may be related to the geographic origin of different populations. The green form described above is the most abundant.

This red and black bug has a distinctive red X-shaped marking on its wings and a red band on the first thoracic segment behind its head. Its slender body is 10 to 12 mm long.

The nymph has a red or orange-red abdomen, with black spots appearing on it as the insect grows. The wing pads are black and become more pronounced with each moult.

Pentatomids owe their name to the fact that their antennae are divided into five segments (from the Greek penta, or five). This characteristic is less obvious than their shield-shaped bodies, which has also earned them the name “shield bugs.” There is a triangle (scutellum) where the wings join. Their heads are generally small.

The shape of the mouthparts of these piercing and sucking insects depends on their diet. In herbivores, the first segment of the rostrum is slender and located under the head. In predatory stink bugs, this segment is larger and projects in front of the head.

Most of these insects give off a very foul odour when they are disturbed. They produce these repellent secretions from glands on the abdomen, near the rear legs.