Choerocoris paganus
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Choerocoris paganus, is a native Australian insect, also commonly known as both the red jewel bug and ground shield bug. This small bug with a body length of 1cm is easily recognisable with its large, mostly crimson scutella with a large blue black blotch towards the front and two small blotches towards the back that have a copper, green hue. The head and legs are dark blue.They are one of the most commonly encountered jewel bugs in Australia and can easily be distinguished from other species by textured areas on and around the pronotum. It is generally not harmful, but can excrete pungent stink fluid if handled roughly.
The first scientific description of the Australian red jewel bug was made in 1775 by Danish entomologist Johan Christian Fabricius as a species of true bug in the family Scutelleridae, the 'shield backed bugs'. These are not be confused with jewel beetles which are from the order coleoptera with different mouth and wing features.
The genus name Choerocoris is derived its name from the Greek words 'choiros', for its 'pig-like' rounded appearance, and 'koris', for its convex bug shape. The species epithet paganus comes from its latin root... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grampians National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Hattah-Kulkyne National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Flinders Ranges National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Nitmiluk National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Freycinet National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Kosciuszko National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Great Otway National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Red Jewel Bug sighting in Great Otway National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 331st most-seen of the 418 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January to March
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Red Jewel Bug in Great Otway National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April to December, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Red Jewel Bug sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
10th of 10
Of the 10 parks where we can rate Red Jewel Bug sightings, Great Otway National Park ranks 10th at about 10%. The best odds are in Grampians National Park (Australia, about 40%), Hattah-Kulkyne National Park (Australia, about 40%) and Flinders Ranges National Park (Australia, about 30%). All parks ranked.
Same order: Hemiptera
The closest relatives of the Red Jewel Bug that you can see in Great Otway National Park (order Hemiptera, True Bugs, Hoppers, Aphids, and allies) are Alpine Hairy Cicada (about 10%), Orange Assassin Bug (about 10%) and Red-Eyed Firetail (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Red Jewel Bug is recorded against all the insects logged in Great Otway National Park (6 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
