Spiked Shieldbug - Picromerus bidens

Length 12-13.5 mm. A large and distinctive predatory shieldbug, which has unmistakeable thorn-like projections on the front of the pronotum.

Often found in flower-rich woodland edge habitats and also frequent on heathland.

Adult: July-November.

This species usually overwinters as eggs and less frequently as larvae, becoming adult by July/August. The nymphs are greyish-black with pale banded legs and yellow banded antennae. Like the adults, they are predatory, feeding on the larvae of other insects, particularly caterpillars but will also suck sap from plants.

Widespread across Britain and Ireland but scarcer further north and recently recorded from Scotland.

Fairly frequent but not common in Leicestershire and Rutland.