1971] 
Alcock — Behavior of Stinkbug 
227 
berry leaves. Later in the day they feed on a wide variety of plants 
including bracken fern, the first pentatomid reported to attack a 
fern. Adults which have overwintered mate in the late afternoon 
and evening in May and June. Males engage in several tactile court- 
ship activities which may induce the female to raise her abdomen 
upward. Males then turn away from females and back toward them 
with aedaegus extruded. Copulation is initiated in this end-to-end 
position. In all other pentatomids and most Heteroptera copulation 
begins with the male above the female, although later the male often 
dismounts and faces away from its mate. Aggregations of adults and 
nymphs are quite common and may have two functions — ( 1 ) to 
bring reproductively active individuals together and (2) to facilitate 
extraction of plant juices. 
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