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Gum Tree Shield Bug - Theseus modestus

Family Pentatomidae

This page contains pictures and information about Gum Tree Shield Bugs in genera Theseus that we found in the Brisbane area, Queensland, Australia.

Body length 15mm
 
This shield bug looks very similar to the other Gum Tree Shield Bug Poecilometis acanthopygius. Both can be found on the Gum tree trunk. However, this shield bug is less common than the P. acanthopygius in Brisbane.
 
wpe13.jpg (46688 bytes)
 
Because those difference species of Gum Tree Shield Bugs look so similar and live in the same environments, we believe they may have form a Mullerian mimicry complex. In Mullerian mimicry, the model is not defined and several unpalatable species share warning colors or patterns to evade predation. Both models and mimics are toxic. Several species from several different orders may comprise a mimicry complex. The advantage is that the predators need only encounter one form to shun the entire complex.
 
Reference:
1. Insects of Australia, CSIRO, Division of Entomology, Melbourne University Press, 2nd Edition 1991, pp 509.
2. FaunaKeys - Stink Bugs of Australia,  Australian Museum online 2003.
3. Theseus modestus - Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of the Environment and Heritage, Commonwealth of Australia 2005. 

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Last updated: December 21, 2005.