Shield bug

Pare - shield bug

English name: shield bug

Scientific name: Oncacontias vittatus (Fabricius)
order = Hemiptera; family = Acanthosomatidae

was one of the first insects from Aotearoa / New Zealand to be described by a European scientist (by the Swedish entomologist Fabricius in 1781), from collections made during Captain Cook's visits;
occurs throughout Aotearoa / New Zealand in many habitats;
produces one generation each year;
nymphs seem to prefer grasses, especially toetoe;
adults apparently feed on a wide range of endemic plants;
is one of very few species of plant bug in Aotearoa / New Zealand known to feed on "hard-leaved" trees such as rimu.