For the identification of insects and other fauna and flora of South Africa.

Friday, May 15, 2009

The largest stink bug I have ever seen

Before you look further, see if you can find her in these first two photographs?

They blend in so beautifully with their surroundings.
This is the nymph of one of the inflated stink bugs Encosternum delegorguei. It is LARGE, about 1 inch in body length. As they get older they turn a bright yellow but are easily distinquished by the white dots on its back. On hot days, they fly in drones, settling in the evenings.
They can eject an acrid fluid from stink glands with some force. In parts of Africa, they are eaten as a delicacy, being boiled in hot water, squeezed to remove the nauseating secretion and then roasted or dried.
The underside......

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