harlequin bug
noun
1.
a black stink bug,
Murgantia histrionica,
having red and yellow markings, that feeds on cabbages and other cruciferous plants.
Also called
cabbage bug
,
calicoback
,
calico bug
,
harlequin cabbage bug
.
Origin
1865-70,
Americanism
British Dictionary definitions for
harlequin bug
harlequin bug
noun
1.
a brightly coloured heteropterous insect,
Murgantia histrionica,
of the US and Central America: a pest of cabbages and related plants: family
Pentatomidae