The Plant Bug (Lygus pratensis) is a small, widespread insect from Europe, Africa, and northern China. It is from the Hemiptera order and Miridae family. The photographed Plant Bug is from Kenya.

The Plant Bug can be green, red, or brown. Usually the male Plant Bug is light reddish-brown and the female is green and brown. Its body is elongated and flat. Below the head, at the back of the neck, is a darker mark, usually in a heart-shape. It has wings. It eyes, legs, and antennae are red-brown.

Plant Bug

It grows to about one centimetre (almost half an inch) long.

The Plant Bug prefers meadows and gardens. Pratensis means meadow.

It is a sap-sucking insect. Both the larvae and the adult bug suck the juice from plants and flowers. It is considered a pest because it is harmful to plants.

Females lay eggs in flower buds or other plant parts. The tiny eggs are round and white and are deposited in groups. The larvae are small, round and bright. In the later stages the larvae are completely green and they can easily be confused with aphids.

Photographer: Martina Nicolls

Martina Nicolls: SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM