Uhler's Stink Bugs

Like other stink bugs, Uhler’s stink bug has a shield-shaped body. Native to North and Central America, Uhler’s stink bugs will damage nectarines, pistachios, and tomatoes, along with seeds, grain, other fruits and vegetables, ornamental plants, legumes, and tree leaves.

Uhler’s stink bug (xpda) CC BY-SA 4.0

Uhler’s stink bug identification

Uhler’s stink bug (Chlorochroa uhleri) looks a lot like green stink bugs (Acrosternum hilare), which may have a a red, orange, or yellow outer edge, and Say stink bugs (Chlorochroa sayi), which are green with a white border. Uhler's stink bugs tend to be slightly larger than other stink bug species. Uhler’s stink bugs may also turn a dustier green that almost looks tan and the outer band may pale to the point of looking nearly white. Quite honestly, unless you are looking at a beneficial rough stink bug (Brochymena sulcata), you are looking at a pest that should be hand-picked and destroyed.

Uhler’s stink bug (Robert Webster/xpda.com) CC-BY-SA-4.0

Damage caused by Uhler’s stink bugs

Uhler’s stink bugs eat fruit by piercing the surface and sucking out the sugary sweet juice. At first, those feeding spots may look like tiny, translucent blue-green dimples. If you cut into the fruit, you will see the fruit has turned into grayish white pithy tissue that doesn’t look the least bit appetizing. These pests can also transmit tomato bacterial spot and create points of entry for other pests and diseases.

Uhler’s stink bug controls

Insecticides are ineffective against stink bugs, but that may be a good thing. Instead of spraying chemicals that kill off beneficial insects, a healthy, biodiverse garden will likely be home to assassin bugs, parasitic wasps and flies, such as the tachinid fly (Trichopoda pennipes) and the Trissolcus basalis wasp, which will parasitize stink bug eggs. Birds, spiders, toads, and other insect eating critters will also help keep stink bug populations down.

Your best stink bug management program simply involves walking around and looking for them, hand-picking them and depositing them in a container of soapy water or feeding them to your chickens. You may have to be quick, as stink bugs tend to scramble to the opposite side of a twig or branch if they sense someone is looking for them. You will need to monitor for stink bugs from the time buds emerge until the end of the harvest season.

These pests are often found overwintering in common mullein, curly dock, and Russian thistle. If stink bugs have been a serious pest in the past, pull mulch away from fruit trees before green fruit appear. After the harvest, simply push the mulch back into place.