Stats

Lifespan: Annual
Size: Small
Diet: Herbivore
Activity: Diurnal
Social: Solitary
Biome: Tropical forest
Range: Southeast Asia
Movement: Flight
Breeding: Egg-laying
Defense: Toxins
Status: Uncommon

About

This shield-shaped bug lives in clusters on the stems of various bean plants. It survives by injecting a symbiotic bacteria into its gut to digest tough plant sap.

Life cycle

1.
egg
A small egg is laid on or near the larval food source and hatches within days or weeks.
2.
juvenile
An immature insect feeds and molts, growing through successive instars.
3.
subadult
A near-adult insect has wing buds or near-mature form, one molt away from full size.
4.
adult
Fully grown, with full wings and adult coloration.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Family: Plataspidae
Genus: Megacopta