Shield bug

Woundwort Shield Bug (Stagonomus venustissimus)

A wander around the garden last week netted us an unfamiliar shield bug on one of the Common Ragwort flowerheads. Some quick research on the British Bugs website – an online guide to the UK's Hemiptera species – showed it to be a Woundwort Shield Bug (Stagonomus venustissimus). This is one of the UK's smaller shield bugs, measuring in at a mere 5-7 mm (about 1/4 inch). It's widespread across much of southern and central England, as far north as Yorkshire. It's much less common in western England and Wales. Elsewhere, it's found across most of Europe. The primary food source for its developing youngsters is Hedge Woundwort – hence the insect's common name – though they will also nibble on White and Red dead-nettles and Black Horehound. Given that we have plenty of the latter two "also rans" in our garden, perhaps we'll harbor some shield bug offspring in the coming months.

Striped

White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis)

While wandering around the garden last week, I discovered this handsome White-lipped Snail (Cepaea hortensis) hanging from the leaf of a Common Nettle (Urtica dioica) plant near the fire pit. The pale "lip" of its shell – the edge closest to where its foot emerges – quickly distinguishes it from the Dark-lipped Snail (Cepaea nemoralis) which featured on the blog several years ago. As with that closely related species, these snails can vary remarkably from one individual to the next. Some, like the one above, are marked with up to five bands of colour while others, like the one below, are a single solid shade, typically pinkish or yellow. Considerable research done on this genus of snails suggests that the wide variety of markings may serve two purposes: camouflage and temperature control. By blending in with their surroundings, and not looking like every other snail a potential predator might come across, snails with different markings might avoid being eaten. And snails with lighter coloured shells heat up less quickly than do snails with darker shells, which may explain why those in more open areas tend to be paler.

White-lipped Snails are widespread across the UK, and indeed across much of central and western Europe; they're also found along the coast of northeastern North America. Their habitats range from grasslands and gardens to dunes, clifftops and woodland, and they're known to reach altitudes of more than 2000 metres (6500 feet) in the Alps. Favourite foods include Common Nettle, Common Ragwort and Common Hogweed, so they're going to find plenty to munch in our garden!