Heteroptera - Coreoidea

Order Heteroptera, Coreoidea - Squash Bugs

Family: Coreidae
Cambridge, old St Ives Railway TL462615, 11 Sep 2002.
An impressive bug 14mm long. The orange is not always so prominent.
Hosts include sheep's sorrel, sorrel, great water dock, curled dock, rhubarb, persicaria and knotgrass; (Polygonaceae). Because of this host range the bugs may be found in hedgerows, the margins of cultivated fields, watermeadows, wastelands (but seldom on heaths) and the edges of woods. Found in England and Wales up to the southern midlands, the known distribution is patchy; the bug is much more abundant in the south of its range.—Southwood & Leston
Also shown, two stages of the nymph
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Family: Coreidae
Cambridge, Trumpington Meadows TL432542, 5 Oct 2018.
Takes its name from the tooth-like spines on the front of the pronotum, seen in the second image.
Feeds on black meddick, Melilotus sp and other related plants in the Leguminosae, such as clovers, in dry, open habitats.
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Family: Coreidae
Cambridge, Mill Road Cemetery TL461581, 8 Sep 2014.
In Britain was long known only from Box Hill in Surrey and feeding on box trees. It has recently rapidly expanded its geographical range and adopted a broader diet, including hawthorn, buckthorn, yew and plum trees.
The adult resembles a slimmed-down Coreus, but with yellow-brown legs. The nymphs are also slimmer than the equivalent Coreus stages, the long antennae very prominent.
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Family: Coreidae
Cambridge, Mill Road Cemetery TL461582, 6 Sep 2015.
A VERY large bug up to 20mm long (excluding antennae)
Native to North America, first recorded in Britain in 2007 it has already become (by 2015) widely established
Nymphs feed on pine seeds
There is a recording scheme for this species
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Enlarged view

Family: Coreidae
Haslingfield Pit TL408516, 18 Sep 2019.
The only coreid with a prominently diamond-shaped body.
Historically concentrated in coastal sites, but increasingly being found inland.
Prefers dry chalky conditions. Foodplants are sandworts, spurreys and other plants in the Caryophyllaceae.
The rather blurred sighting below, by this author in Cambridge TL462583 19 Apr 2019, is believed to be the first for Cambridgeshire.
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Family: Rhopalidae
Coe Fen New Bit, TL451571, 18 May 2023.
First found in Britain (London) in 2003 and has spread out fairly slowly.
British Bugs says it favours "warm and sparsely-vegetated brownfield situations", but this was found in a well-grassed area.
Food plants are crucifers.
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Family: Rhopalidae
Cambridge, garden, 18 May 2021.
Before about 2005 confined to the coasts of southern Britain, this species is now found inland throughout England and Wales.
Nymphs are brown, a long elliptical shape, and feed on a variety of plants.
Appears to be extremely common (but this may be partly because it is very conspicuous and distinctive)
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Family: Rhopalidae
Cambridge, Mill Road Cemetery TL461583, 24 Aug 2014.
Only a vagrant species before about 2000, it first established itself in the Thames Estuary area and has become fairly widespread.
The similar species S. punctatonervosus has a similar history and has perhaps spread a little more rapidly. The species shown here is distinguished by a ridge at the front of the pronotum with closed loop markings at the side behind it - arrowed on the enlargement.
Some S. abutilon, as this one, are quite colourful, but others are muted like the S. punctatonervosus below.
Its hosts are Asteraceae, especially sticky groundsel (Senecio viscosus).
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Family: Rhopalidae
Cambridge, Barnwell East LNR TL479582, 11 Jul 2018.
See comments on previous species. This species has half loop markings at the sides of the pronotum (arrowed), and no ridge at the front.
Also feeds on Asteraceae.
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