Umbonia Spinosa

Umbonia Spinosa
These thorn bugs are related to cicadas, and use their beaks to pierce plant stems to feed upon their sap. Their strange appearance still poses many questions to scientists.

Females lay their eggs in the tender bark of twigs and the eggs hatch about 20 days later. The female actively tends her brood or colony, which can number from 15 to 50 individuals. Young nymphs have three horns instead of the one seen on the adults. While four generations occur per year, females lay only a single clutch of eggs.

Know more:
http://entomology.ifas.ufl.edu/creatures/orn/thorn_bug.htm

Image credit: Colin Hutton

#biodiversity   #thornbug   #coolcritters