Red and Black Froghopper (Cercopsis vulnerata) Photo by gailhampshire from Cradley, Malvern, U.K, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0&gt;, via Wikimedia Commons

Dear Readers, as you might expect with a name like Bugwoman, I am very fond of bugs. Although in North America any ‘creepy crawly’ is often called a bug, the name actually means a member of the order Hemiptera – all bugs have mouthparts adapted for sucking juices, usually from plants, but occasionally from other animals. As a result, in spite of my love for them as a group, even I have to admit that bugs are some of the gardener’s most aggravating little companions.

So, your mission this week is to  have a look at the critters pictured below, and see if you can put a name to them. I have tried to pick bugs where the common name will give you a clue, even if you’ve never stumbled across the bug yourself. Just match the species name to the photo, and pop your answers in the comments as usual. You have until 5 p.m UK time on Friday 1st April to have a go, and the results will be published on Saturday 2nd April. I will disappear your answers as soon as I see them.

So, if you think that the bug in Photo A is a Hawthorn Shieldbug, your answer is A) 1

Onwards!

Species

1. Hawthorn Shieldbug (Acanthosoma haemoprrhoidale)
2. Parent Shieldbug (Elasmucha grisea)
3. New Forest Cicada (Cicadetta montana)
4. Common Froghopper (Philaenus spumarius)
5. Rhombic Leatherbug (Syromastus rhombeus)
6. Rhododendron Leafhopper (Graphocephala fennahi)
7. Bedbug (Cimex lectularius)
8. Common Green Capsid Bug (Lygocoris pabulinus)
9. Water Measurer (Hydrometra stagnorum)
10. Common Pondskater (Gerris lacustris)
11. Common Water Boatman (Corixa Punctata)
12. Water Scorpion (Nepa cinerea)

Photos 

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I)

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