Bishop's mitre shield bug
Its pointed head and pronotum form a peaked shape resembling a bishop's ceremonial hat, which is how this grass seed feeding shield bug got its name.
| Where | Dry grassland and field edges |
|---|---|
| Size | 8 to 10 mm long |
| When | April to September |
This shield bug has a narrow, oval body in pale straw yellow with darker brown longitudinal stripes, and a pointed head and pronotum that taper to a shape unlike other shield bugs sharing the same grassland. Adults reach 8 to 10 mm in length.
It feeds by piercing developing grass seeds and lives low among tall, dry grassland through summer, then overwinters as an adult in leaf litter or grass tussocks before mating the following spring.
Traits
Habitat
Grassland
Colour
Yellow, Brown
Active
Day
To people
Considered harmless to people.
Activity through the year
Often confused with
The small grass shield bug is much smaller at only 4 to 4.5 mm long, with a short, triangular head instead of the bishop's mitre shield bug's pointed, tapering one.
Questions
Is the Bishop's mitre shield bug dangerous to people?
Considered harmless to people.
When can you see the Bishop's mitre shield bug?
The Bishop's mitre shield bug can be seen from April to September, by day.
Plate retouched from a photo by Göran Liljeberg, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons Licence
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Last updated 2026-09-26. Every entry is checked against published sources.