Little ‘jewels’. Flashy, shiny and metallic.
- Jewel bugs are also known as metallic shield bugs.
- Jewel bugs are from the ‘Scutelleridae’ family, which are true bugs that have mouths that suck, rather than beetles that have mouths that chomp.
- The jewel bug’s diet consists of plant juices.
- When jewel bug’s feed, they alter the plant by injecting an enzyme from their saliva into the plant matter, which turns the plant into a liquid state.
- Jewel bugs are related to stink bugs, as they can produce a smell when they are irritated.
- There are approximately 450 species of jewel bugs around the world.
- Jewel bugs can range from 5 mm to 2 cm (0.2 to 0.79 inches) in length.
- Jewel bugs come in a range of colours including metallic or iridescent blue, red, orange, black and green.
- Jewel bugs lay white, cylindrical shaped eggs.
- Jewel bugs moult, which is when they shed their exoskeleton to grow bigger.
Bibliography:
Scutelleridae 26 December 2012, Wikipedia, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scutelleridae>
Did you take the photo?
No, Janelle did.
What happens to the plant when they eat the leaves do they effect the plant in a bad way or not should I cut back the tree there are about 60 beetles on the tree
awesoome! im def writing this down my notebook