Black and white earth bug
| Black and white earth bug | ||||||||||||
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Black and white earth bug ( Tritomegas bicolor ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Tritomegas bicolor | ||||||||||||
| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The black and white earth bug ( Tritomegas bicolor ) is an insect from the family of earth bugs (Cydnidae).
features
The black and white earth bug, which is about 5 to 7 millimeters in size, owes its name to the black and white drawn front wings. The pronotum has a metallic sheen and, unlike the similar species Tritomegas sexmaculatus , is only lined with white up to the middle.
Similar species
- Sehirus luctuosus Mulsant & Rey , 1866
- Tritomegas sexmaculatus ( Rambur , 1839)
- Eurydema oleraceum ( Linnaeus , 1758)
distribution
The black and white earth bug is widespread in Europe and is also found in Asia .
biology
From May the females start to lay eggs. To do this, they create burrows in the ground in which the eggs are deposited in piles of 40 to 50 pieces. The females practice brood care by guarding the eggs and occasionally moving them with their probes. The larvae then migrate to dead nettles under the guidance of the mother and suckle there for about six weeks. The adult bugs live on flowering trees (e.g. fruit trees ) in spring and in the herbaceous layer on dead nettles, garlic mustard , ziesten and other mint plants . However, they also live partially in the ground and suckle at the roots of their host plants. The adults overwinter in the ground or under moss , leaves or stones. If the bugs are disturbed, they chirp by rubbing the hind wings on the abdomen. There is a row of teeth and a matching shrill bar. The tones generated in this way are, however, inaudible to humans.
literature
- Frieder Sauer : bugs and cicadas. Fauna-Verlag, Karlsfeld 1996, ISBN 3-923-01012-5 .
Web links
- www.insektenbox.de
- Tritomegas bicolor in Fauna Europaea. Retrieved September 10, 2011
- Bioacoustics