Hawthorn Shield Bug

Hawthorn Shield Bug

Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale

Daily sighting probability ~10% · With luck
at Snowdonia National Park

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

16 Verified sightings at Snowdonia National Park From 2019 to 2026
104 In all 5 parks
March Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Hawthorn Shield Bug

The hawthorn shield bug (Acanthosoma haemorrhoidale) is a common European shield bug. Its chief food is haws, the fruit of the hawthorn tree, but adults can overwinter on a diet of leaves, and individuals can be found on many potential food plants, including pedunculate oak, sessile oak and whitebeam. They may grow up to 17 mm (0.67 in) long, and are camouflaged in shades of green and brown. Like many so-called "stink bugs", they may release unpleasant odours when disturbed.

The dark green scutellum band is trapezoidal in shape, and extends from the dorsal pronotum to the forewing hemelytral membrane which accounts for the final third of the main body length. The front wings lie flat when the insect is not flying, with the sclerotized pronotum and corium regions coloured dark red. The compound eyes are also red. There is a speckled pigmentation extending from the upper dorsal thorax to the abdominal region. The tarsi are 2-segmented and antennae 5-segmented. As a heteropteran herbivore of mainly green leafed trees and red berries, the species feeds by injecting saliva enzymes from the posterior section of the rostrum into plant tissue, partially digesting it, then sucks... Wikipedia →

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Snowdonia National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
2 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
3 Cairngorms National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
4 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
5 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
~10%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Manchester 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~20%
2 Liverpool 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~20%
3 Birmingham 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~20%
4 Dublin 🇮🇪 Ireland
~20%
5 Leeds 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
6 London 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
~10%
7 Copenhagen 🇩🇰 Denmark
~10%
8 Stockholm 🇸🇪 Sweden
~10%
9 Hamburg 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
10 Helsinki 🇫🇮 Finland
~10%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Hawthorn Shield Bug in Snowdonia National Park?

With luck

About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Hawthorn Shield Bug sighting in Snowdonia National Park on a given day, based on 16 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 138th most-seen of the 387 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 Hawthorn Shield Bug in Snowdonia National Park?

March

In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Hawthorn Shield Bug in Snowdonia National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April–May, October and December, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see a Hawthorn Shield Bug?

Between 2 and 5 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Hawthorn Shield 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.

Is Snowdonia National Park the best place to see a Hawthorn Shield Bug?

Yes

Of the 5 parks where we can rate Hawthorn Shield Bug sightings, Snowdonia National Park has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Bavarian Forest National Park (Germany, about 10%) and Cairngorms National Park (United Kingdom, about 10%).

Where does the Hawthorn Shield Bug sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Hawthorn Shield Bug is recorded against all the insects logged in Snowdonia National Park (16 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.

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