Scutelleridae

Green shield-backed bug Coleotichus costatus, from Brisbane Insects.

Belongs within: Pentatomoidea.

The Scutelleridae, jewel bugs, are a group of mostly shiny and/or brightly coloured shield bugs with a very large scutellum mostly covering the abdomen dorsally, and a hamus (spur-vein) present in the basal cell of the hind wing (Carver et al. 1991). Members include the cotton harlequin bug Tectocoris diophthalmus, a significant pest of cotton bolls.

<==Scutelleridae
    |  i. s.: Philia D14
    |           |--P. elegans (Montrouz. 1861) [=Callidea elegans] D14
    |           `--P. senator C70
    |         Chrysocoris sexmaculatus (Leach 1815) [=Scutellera sexmaculata] D14
    |         Peocilocoris B14
    |         Cantao parentum WEE70
    |         Odontoscelis fuliginosa RD77, H01
    |         Homaemus aeneifrons E66
    |--Tetyra Fabricius 1803 [incl. Macraulax Dallas 1851; Tetyrinae] G75
    |    `--T. bipunctatus (Herrich Schaeffer 1839) [=Pachycoris bipunctatus, *Macraulax bipunctatus] G75
    |--Odontotarsinae CGW91
    |    |--Odontotarsus RD77
    |    |--Eurygaster G75
    |    |    |--E. integriceps RD77
    |    |    |--E. maura [incl. E. maura var. picta] H01
    |    |    `--E. nigrocucullatus G75
    |    `--Morbora Distant 1899 G75
    |         |--*M. australis Distant 1899 G75
    |         |--M. hirtula Bergroth 1904 G75
    |         `--M. schoutedeni Bergroth 1904 G75
    |--Elvisurinae CGW91
    |    |--Elvisura G75
    |    |--Solenostethium G75
    |    |--Solenotichus Martin 1897 G75
    |    |    `--S. circuliferus (Walker 1867) [=Sphaerocoris circuliferus; incl. *So. brevipes] G75
    |    |--Austrotichus Gross 1975 G75
    |    |    `--*A. rugosus Gross 1975 G75
    |    `--Coleotichus White 1839 G75
    |         |  i. s.: C. nigrovarius Walker & Schouteden 1905 K08
    |         |         C. sordidus Walker & Schouteden 1904 K08
    |         |--C. (Coleotichus) G75
    |         |    |--*C. (C.) costatus (Fabricius 1787) [=Cimex costatus] G75
    |         |    `--C. (C.) blackburni G75
    |         `--C. (Paracoleotichus) discrepans G75
    |--Tectocoris [Tectocorinae] CGW91
    |    |--T. cyanipes Fabr. 1803 (see below for synonymy) D14
    |    `--T. diophthalmus Kirk 1908 C91, D14
    `--Scutellerinae CGW91
         |--Scutiphora pedicellata CGW91, C91
         |--Lampromicra senator CGW91, C91
         |--Calliphara Germar 1839 G75
         |    |--*C. nobilis (Linnaeus 1763) G75 [=Cimex nobilis G75, Pentatoma nobilis L02]
         |    |--C. imperialis CGW91
         |    `--C. praslinia (Guérin 1830) [=Scutellera praslinia] G75
         |--Scutellera B35
         |    |--S. cyanipoda Boisduval 1835 B35
         |    |--S. lineata G20
         |    |--S. pagana [=Tetyra pagana] B35
         |    `--S. tongae Boisduval 1835 B35
         `--Choerocoris Dallas 1851 G75
              |--*C. paganus (Fabricius 1775) [=Cimex paganus] G75
              `--C. variegatus G75
                   |--C. v. variegatus G75
                   `--C. v. similis Distant 1899 G75

Tectocoris cyanipes Fabr. 1803 [=T. lineola var. cyanipes; incl. T. lineola var. banksi Don 1805, Cimex lineola Fabr. 1781 non Linnaeus 1758, T. lineola, T. lineola var. obliquus Walk. 1867, T. lineola var. tongae Boisd. 1832] D14

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[B35] Boisduval, J. B. 1835. Voyage de Découvertes de l’Astrolabe. Exécuté par ordre du Roi, pendant les années 1826–1827–1828–1829, sous le commandement de M. J. Dumont d'Urville. Faune entomologique de l'océan Pacifique, avec l'illustration des insectes nouveaux recueillis pendant le voyage vol. 2. Coléoptères et autres ordres. J. Tastu: Paris.

[B14] Bouchard, P. (ed.) 2014. The Book of Beetles: A lifesize guide to six hundred of nature's gems. Ivy Press: Lewes (United Kingdom).

[CGW91] Carver, M., G. F. Gross & T. E. Woodward. 1991. Hemiptera (bugs, leafhoppers, cicadas, aphids, scale insects etc.) In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers vol. 1 pp. 429–509. Melbourne University Press: Carlton (Victoria).

[C70] CSIRO. 1970. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers. Melbourne University Press.

[C91] CSIRO. 1991. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers 2^nd ed. vol. 1. Melbourne University Press: Carlton (Victoria).

[D14] Distant, W. L. 1914. Rhynchota from New Caledonia and the surrounding islands. In: Sarasin, F., & J. Roux (eds) Nova Caledonia: Forschungen in Neu-Caledonian und auf den Loyalty-Inseln. A. Zoologie vol. 1 pt 4 pp. 369–390, pls 11–12. C. W. Kreidels Verlag: Wiesbaden.

[E66] Evans, H. E. 1966. The Comparative Ethology and Evolution of the Sand Wasps. Harvard University Press: Cambridge (Massachusetts).

[G20] Goldfuss, G. A. 1820. Handbuch der Naturgeschichte vol. 3. Handbuch der Zoologie pt 1. Johann Leonhard Schrag: Nürnberg.

[G75] Gross, G. F. 1975. Plant-feeding and Other Bugs (Hemiptera) of South Australia. Heteroptera—Part I. Handbook of the Flora and Fauna of South Australia.

[H01] Horváth, G. 1901. Hemipterák [Hemiptera]. In: Horváth, G. (ed.) Zichy Jenő Gróf Harmadik Ázsiai Utazása [Dritte Asiatische Forschungsreise des Grafen Eugen Zichy] vol. 2. Zichy Jenő Gróf Harmadik Ázsiai Utazásának Állattani Eredményei [Zoologische Ergebnisse der Dritten Asiatischen Forschungsreise des Grafen Eugen Zichy] pp. 245–274. Victor Hornyánszky: Budapest, and Karl W. Hierseman: Leipzig.

[K08] Kirkaldy, G. W. 1908. A catalogue of the Hemiptera of Fiji. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 33: 345–391, pl. 4.

[L02] Latreille, P. A. 1802. Histoire Naturelle, générale et particulière des crustacés et des insectes vol. 3. Familles naturelles des genres. F. Dufart: Paris.

[RD77] Richards, O. W., & R. G. Davies. 1977. Imms' General Textbook of Entomology 10^th ed. vol. 2. Classification and Biology. Chapman and Hall: London.

[WEE70] Woodward, T. E., J. W. Evans & V. F. Eastop. 1970. Hemiptera (bugs, leafhoppers, etc.) In: CSIRO. The Insects of Australia: A textbook for students and research workers pp. 387–457. Melbourne University Press.

Last updated: 9 May 2022.