Green Shield Bug (Palomena prasina)

The Green Shield Bug (Palomena prasina) is one of those insects that hides a quiet trick in plain sight - bright green through spring and summer, it shifts to bronze or brown as winter approaches, a subtle seasonal costume change that most people never notice.

Green Shield Bugs feed on a wide range of plants, using their piercing mouthparts to tap into the sap of leaves, buds, and developing fruits. They are particularly fond of beans, raspberries, and hazelnuts, though they rarely cause significant damage to garden crops. Like most shield bugs, they communicate through substrate-borne vibrations - low-frequency signals transmitted through the plant stems on which they sit, inaudible to us but an essential part of their courtship and territorial behaviour.

Shield bugs are sometimes called stink bugs for good reason. When disturbed, the Green Shield Bug releases a pungent liquid from glands on its thorax - a chemical cocktail of aldehydes that tastes unpleasant and deters most predators. The smell lingers on hands and clothing, which may partly explain why these abundant insects are admired at a distance more often than they are closely examined. Their simple, geometric form and seasonal colour change make them one of the most quietly elegant insects in any European garden.

Bugs Series

Bugs gathers illustrations adapted from and inspired by founder Simon Tyler's book Bugs, published by Pavilion Children’s Books in 2017. The series celebrates the graphic elegance of insect life: armour-like exoskeletons, iridescent wings, compound eyes, and the ingenious mechanics of movement and camouflage. It’s a visual field guide reimagined—clean, bold forms and carefully tuned palettes that bring structure to the surface.

Each piece begins with the research-led drawings from the book and then goes further: refined linework, rebalanced composition, and subtle textural detailing designed for generous print sizes. The aim is clarity and presence — images that feel scientifically grounded yet striking on the wall. Printed with the same archival care as our other series, Bugs turns natural history into crisp, enduring graphic art.

Printing & Materials

Our Bugs series is produced in collaboration with specialist fine-art printing partners using museum-grade 250 gsm archival giclée paper.

Each print is made to order with exceptional precision and colour accuracy, using pigment-based inks for long-term stability and rich tonal depth.

Prints are carefully rolled in acid-free tissue and shipped in rigid cardboard tubes to ensure they arrive in perfect condition, ready for framing.

All materials and processes are chosen for their longevity, texture, and fidelity to the original artwork, reflecting our commitment to quality and craft.