Tortoise Bug

Tortoise Bug

Eurygaster testudinaria

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Birmingham

In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%

99 Verified sightings at Birmingham
125 In all 6 parks From 2019 to 2026
August Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Tortoise Bug

Eurygaster testudinaria is a Palearctic shieldbug. It occurs in Europe from the Northern Mediterranean to southern Scandinavia, and East through Central Asia to northern China and Japan. This species is very difficult to differentiate from Eurygaster maura but testudinaria has a slight central depression at the front of the head. Its colour similarly varies.

Eurygaster testudinaria feeds on Poaceae (grasses). Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
2 Vanoise National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%
3 Aigüestortes National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~10%
4 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%
5 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
6 Cévennes National Park 🇫🇷 France
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Birmingham 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
2 Kharkiv 🇺🇦 Ukraine
~10%
3 London 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
4 Amsterdam 🇳🇱 Netherlands
~10%
5 Nizhny Novgorod 🇷🇺 Russia
~10%
6 Warsaw 🇵🇱 Poland
~10%
7 Kyiv 🇺🇦 Ukraine
<5%
8 Hamburg 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
9 Brussels 🇧🇪 Belgium
<5%
10 Seoul 🇰🇷 South Korea
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Tortoise Bug in Birmingham?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Tortoise Bug sighting in Birmingham on a given day, based on 99 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 114th most-seen of the 811 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Tortoise Bug in Birmingham?

July and August

In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Tortoise Bug in Birmingham on a given day, against under 5% in November to March, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Tortoise Bug?

Between 11 am and 2 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Tortoise Bug sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Birmingham the best place to see a Tortoise Bug?

Yes

Of the 15 cities where we can rate Tortoise Bug sightings, Birmingham has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Kharkiv (Ukraine, about 10%) and London (United Kingdom, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Tortoise Bug live in Birmingham?

Same order: Hemiptera

The closest relatives of the Tortoise Bug that you can see in Birmingham (order Hemiptera, True Bugs, Hoppers, Aphids, and allies) are Green Shield Bug (about 40%), Dock Bug (about 30%) and Forest Bug (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Tortoise Bug sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Tortoise Bug is recorded against all the insects logged in Birmingham (99 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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