''Lygus pratensis'' is a species of plant bug belonging to the family

Miridae The Miridae are a large and diverse insect family at one time known by the Synonym (taxonomy), taxonomic synonym Capsidae. Species in the family may be referred to as capsid bugs or "mirid bugs". Common names include plant bugs, leaf bugs, and g ...

Distribution and habitat

This species can be found in most of

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, in

Northern Asia North Asia or Northern Asia () is the northern region of Asia, which is defined in geographical terms and consists of three federal districts of Russia: Ural, Siberian, and the Far Eastern. North Asia is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to its n ...

(excluding

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

) and in the

Indomalayan realm The Indomalayan realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms. It extends across most of South and Southeast Asia and into the southern parts of East Asia. Also called the Oriental realm by biogeographers, Indomalaya spreads all over the Ind ...

. These bugs prefers heaths, hedge rows and meadows Commanster
/ref>(hence the species name ''pratensis'', meaning ''of a meadow'').

Description

''Lygus pratensis'' can reach a length of in males, of in females. The color pattern and markings of these plant bugs vary greatly. Color may be green, brown or reddish. Usually the males are light reddish-brown to dark red, while the females are green and brownish-colored. The body is oval in shape and slightly flattened. The scutellum is heart-shaped in both sexes. The wings are clearly visible, as they are not completely covered by the hemielytra. Eyes, legs and antennae are usually reddish. These bugs can be identified mainly on the basis of the fine details of the corium.British Bugs
/ref> This species is very similar to '' Lygus wagneri'', but usually it is slightly larger, has longer membrane and a more densely pubescent corium. It is also quite similar to ''

Lygus maritimus ''Heterocordylus tibialis'' is a Palearctic The Palearctic or Palaearctic is a biogeographic realm of the Earth, the largest of eight. Confined almost entirely to the Eastern Hemisphere, it stretches across Europe and Asia, north of the f ...

'' and ''

Lygus rugulipennis ''Lygus rugulipennis'', the European tarnished plant bug, is a species of ''plant bugs'' of the family Miridae. Distribution and habitat This common and widespread species is present in most of Europe and in the Nearctic realm. These bugs mainly ...

''.

Biology

''Lygus pratensis'' is a sap-sucking species. Both the larvae and the adults suck the juice of different herbaceous plants, but also nectar of flowers (especially of ''

Leucanthemum vulgare ''Leucanthemum vulgare'', commonly known as the ox-eye daisy, oxeye daisy, dog daisy, marguerite (, "common marguerite") and other common names, is a widespread flowering plant native to Europe and the temperate regions of Asia, and an introduced ...

'' and ''

Tanacetum vulgare Tansy (''Tanacetum vulgare'') is a perennial, herbaceous flowering plant in the genus ''Tanacetum'' in the Asteraceae, aster family, native to temperate Europe and Asia. It has been introduced to other parts of the world, including North Ameri ...

''). They are polyphagous, mainly feeding on juices of ''

Ranunculus acris ''Ranunculus acris'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Ranunculaceae, and is one of the more common buttercups across Europe and temperate Eurasia. Common names include meadow buttercup, tall buttercup, common buttercup and giant but ...

'', '' Raphanus raphanistrum'', ''

Linaria vulgaris ''Linaria vulgaris'', the common toadflax,Blamey, M. & Grey-Wilson, C. (1989). ''Flora of Britain and Northern Europe''. yellow toadflax or butter-and-eggs, is a species of flowering plant in the family Plantaginaceae, native to Europe, Siberia ...

'', ''

Calluna vulgaris ''Calluna vulgaris'', common heather, ling, or simply heather, is the sole species in the genus ''Calluna'' in the flowering plant family Ericaceae. It is a low-growing evergreen shrub growing to tall, or rarely to and taller, and is found wide ...

'' and of various ''

Asteraceae Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchi ...

'' species, but also on ''

Aphididae The Aphididae are a very large insect family in the aphid superfamily ( Aphidoidea), of the order Hemiptera. These insects suck the sap from plant leaves. Several thousand species are placed in this family, many of which are considered plant/cr ...

'' species. Adults are present all year, with one or two generations. The adult insects overwinter in the litter, in moss or under barks. The females lay their eggs in May and June in flower buds or other plant parts. The tiny eggs are round and white and are deposited in groups. The larvae initially are small, round and bright. In the later stages the larvae are completely green and they can easily be confused with aphids. They grow quickly and are very harmful for the plants. A good biological control is represented by the parasitic wasps of the genus '' Peristenus'' that actively seek the nymphs and lay an egg inside them. When the egg hatches the wasp larva eats the living nymph from the inside.TARA D. GARIEPY, ULRICH KUHLMANN, TIM HAYE, CEDRIC GILLOTT, & MARTIN ERLANDSO
A single-step multiplex PCR assay for the detection of European Peristenus spp., parasitoids of Lygus spp.
/ref>

Bibliography

* Kerzhner I. M., Josifov M. (1999). "Family Miridae". In Aukema, Berend; Rieger, Christian. Catalogue of the Heteroptera of the Palaearctic Region. 3, Cimicomorpha II. Amsterdam: Netherlands Entomological Society. pp. 1–577, pages 121 & 122. . * Schwartz, Michael D., and Robert G. Foottit (1998) Revision of the Nearctic species of the genus Lygus Hahn, with a review of the Palaearctic species (Heteroptera: Miridae), Memoirs on Entomology, International, vol. 10 * E. Wachmann, A. Melber & J. Deckert: Die Tierwelt Deutschlands. Wanzen. Band 2. Goecke & Evers, Keltern, 2004. 288 pp.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q625546 Hemiptera of Asia Lygus Bugs described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus