Pentatomidae

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Pentatomidae
several pentatomid true bugs with nymphs
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Hemiptera
Suborder:	Heteroptera
Infraorder:	Pentatomomorpha
Superfamily:	Pentatomoidea
Family:	Pentatomidae Leach, 1815
Subfamilies
Aphylinae Asopinae Cyrtocorinae Discocephalinae Edessinae Pentatominae Phyllocephalinae Podopinae Serbaninae Stirotarsinae

Pentatomidae, Greek pente meaning five and tomos meaning section, is a family of insects that includes some of the stink bugs and shield bugs.

The unscientific term stink bug is also applied to distantly related species such as Boisea trivittata, the boxelder bug, and the Eleodes sp., the pinacate beetles.

If disturbed, stink bugs emit a pungent liquid containing cyanide compounds with a rancid almond scent. Their antennae are 5-segmented, which gives the family its name. Their bodies are usually shield-shaped. The stink bugs have thick wing covers known as shields.

Many stink bugs and shield bugs are considered agricultural pest insects, because they can create large populations; they suck plant juices and damage crop production, and they are resistant to many pesticides. However, some genera of Pentatomidae are considered highly beneficial; the anchor bug, which can be distinguished by the red-orange anchor shape on the adult, is one example. It is a predator of other insects, especially Mexican bean beetles, Japanese beetles, and other pest insects.

In the British Isles there are 33 species of shield bugs belonging to the super-family Pentatomoidea, 32 of which are native and 1 which is considered to be newly naturalised.^[1] Of these 32 species, 17 belong in the family Pentatomidae. Stink bugs hibernate in the winter.

The stink bug is known as bọ xít in Vietnamese, and is featured in Vietnamese cuisine.

• Forest bug (Pentatoma rufipes)
• Halyomorpha_halys

Dew on a Banksia Shield Bug (Poecilometis eximius)	Freshly moulted nymph of tribe Halyini.	Anchor bug Stiretrus anchorago A beneficial stink bug	An aggregation of Pentatomid nymphs
A Pentatomid nymph	possibly Rhaphigaster nebulosa	Sloe Bugs hatching	A nymph of Nezara viridula
Florida Predatory Stink Bug (Euthyrhynchus floridanus)

Cited references

1. ^ Evans, Martin; Roger Edmondson (2005). A Photographic Guide to the Shieldbugs and Squashbugs of the British Isles. Wakefield: WGUK. ISBN 0-9549506-0-7. 

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Pentatomidae

• Shieldbugs of Britain
• Stink Bugs of North America - photos and information
• Green Stink Bug Acrosternum hilare - large format diagnostic photos, adults and nymphs
• Stink Bug Cosmopepla bimaculata diagnostic photos
• Images of shield bugs
• Brown Marmorated Stink Bug - Penn State Entomology Department Fact Sheet

on the UF / IFAS Featured Creatures Web site

• Acrosternum hilare, green stink bug
• Alcaeorrhynchus grandis, a predatory stink bug
• Euschistus servus , brown stink bug
• Euthyrhynchus floridanus, Florida predatory stink bug
• Halyomorpha halys, brown marmorated stink bug
• Nezara viridula, southern green stink bug
• Podisus maculiventris, spined soldier bug
• Stiretrus anchorago, a predatory stink bug
• Proxys punctulatus, black stink bug