Green Tortoise Beetle

Say hello to Cassida viridis or the Green Tortoise Beetle.

Another new species recorded in my wildlife pond/garden.

I almost missed him sat on the dead flower head. Despite this picture making him look quite large, he is only about 7mm long.

I can honestly say I have never seen one before, which is why I had to look him up in my reference books. They are a close relation to the Mint Leaf Beetle. They are fairly common this time of year, and are usually found on thistle heads. I have a small number of thistles growing at the edge of the garden, so no doubt he wandered in from there.

It's not hard to see why it's got it's tortoise name, apparently they tuck up inside that armour plated shell, and grip what ever they are climbing on as their defence mechanism.

The wildlife garden has been a constant source of interest for me, and the growing side of it I consider to have been a bit of a failure, due to the slugs hammering anything edible put in there. I will give it another go next spring, but this time with added nematodes to try and reduce their number. Hopefully the nectar rich plants will survive and I will get more of the passing butterflies to stop off.