Insects are numerous in Germany. Native species range from beetles to dragonflies to pesky bloodsuckers. A list of 50 insect species from the country presents you with an interesting overview.
However, it is also part of the truth that the death of insects in Germany cannot be dismissed out of hand. It is therefore advisable to take measures to Protect insects. Our recommendations:
- Prefer bee-friendly plants in the garden, on balconies and terraces
- mechanical insect protection for windows and doors in order to avoid the "apartment death trap"
- Insect hotels provide z. B. for butterflies and wild bees
- Set up drinking places for insects
- consequent renunciation of chemistry
15 flying native insects
Bumblebee(Bombus pascuorum)
- Size: 9 to 18 mm
- Appearance: round, yellow to red-brown, darkly striped, hairy
- Habitat: Forests, forest edges, meadows, gardens
Blue wooden bee(Xylocopa violacea)
- Size: 20 to 28 mm
- Appearance: round, resembles bumblebees, dark blue to black, blue shimmering wings
- Habitat: settlement areas, gardens, orchards, places with dead wood
Blue-green mosaic maiden(Aeshna cyanea)
- Size: 70 to 80 mm
- Appearance: black basic color, patterned green-blue, strong thorax
- Habitat: small bodies of water, standing or slowly flowing, garden ponds, rain barrels
German wasp(Vespula germanica)
- Size: 12 to 20 mm
- Appearance: strong build, black and yellow abdomen, black thorax
- Habitat: forest edges, shrubs, settlement areas, adaptable
Earth bumblebee(Bombus magnus)
- Size: 16 to 23 mm
- Appearance: round, black basic color, yellow bands, white rump, hairy
- Habitat: Forests, forest edges, meadows, gardens
Common lacewing(Chrysoperla carnea)
- Size: 10 to 30 mm
- Appearance: slender, green to brown, transparent wings, completely covering the abdomen
- Habitat: forest edges, meadows, parks, gardens, residential areas
Common sand bee(Andrena flavipes)
- Size: 6 to 18 mm
- Appearance: resemble honey bees, hairy thorax, dark basic color, yellow to light brown bandages
- Habitat: sand heaths, gravel pits, sand pits, forest edges, dry meadows
Common wasp(Vespula vulgaris)
- Size: 14 to 20 mm
- Appearance: slimmer than German Wasp, yellow-black, frontal shield has a black line
- Habitat: alluvial and mixed forests, city parks, orchards, settlement areas, adaptable
Spotted-winged ant damper(Euroleon nostras)
[Teemu Rintala, Timo Lehto, Euroleon nostras, edited by home garden, CC BY 4.0]
- Size: 25 to 32 mm
- Appearance: slender, dark brown to black, curved antennae, additional antennae on the abdomen
- Habitat: lowlands, forests, south-facing slopes
- Special feature: larvae known as ant lions
Large royal dragonfly(Anax imperator)
- Size: 95 to 110 mm
- Appearance: slender, strong green thorax, blue abdomen
- Habitat: sunny waters, calm or slow flowing, bank areas, garden ponds
Grove hover fly(Episyrphus balteatus)
- Size: 8 to 12 mm
- Appearance: slender, resembling wasps, black and yellow
- Habitat: sparse forests, preferably deciduous trees
House Field Wasp(Polistes dominula)
- Size: 11 to 18 mm
- Appearance: slender, long hanging and orange colored legs, black and yellow color
- Habitat: meadows, heather, settlement areas
Honey bee(Apis mellifera)
- Size: 11 to 18 mm
- Appearance: hairy thorax, brown-black color, lightly striped abdomen
- Habitat: Forests, meadows, need plants rich in nectar and pollen, beehives set up by humans
hornet(Vespa crabro)
- Size: 18 to 24 mm
- Appearance: strong, red-brown thorax, red-yellow abdomen, long antennae
- Habitat: mixed deciduous forests, meadows, preferably orchards
Note: The Asian hornet (Vespa velutina var nigrithorax), which is becoming more and more common, is larger than the domestic hornet. It is an invasive wasp species that occurs mainly in southwest and western Germany.
Red mason bee(Osmia bicornis)
- Size: 10 to 12 mm
- Appearance: very hairy thorax, stocky, rust-red abdomen
- Habitat: forest clearings, forest edges, settlement areas, adaptable
10 domestic beetles
Garden beetle(Phyllopertha horticola)
- Size: 8 to 12 mm
- Appearance: resembles cockchafer, short antennae, light brown wing-coverts, black head
- Habitat: forest edges, open landscapes, gardens
Common bee beetle(Trichodes apiarius)
- Size: 8 to 15 mm
- Appearance: elongated, red and blue-black bands, slightly hairy, short antennae
- Habitat: dry meadows, forest edges, gardens, beehives (larvae)
Common gravedigger(Nicrophorus vespillo)
[AfroBrazilian, Nicrophorus vespillo 01, edited by home garden, CC BY-SA 4.0]
- Size: 10 to 22 mm
- Appearance: black with orange spots, shiny metallic, pointed abdomen
- Habitat: open area
Firefly(Lamprohiza splendidula)
[Udo Schmidt from Germany, Lamprohiza splendidula (Linné, 1767) Male (24767427120), edited by
Home garden, CC BY-SA 2.0]- Size: 8 to 10 mm
- Appearance: males gray-black, females cream-colored and without wings, glows at night
- Habitat: meadows, parks, gardens
Shiny gold rose beetle(Cetonia aurata)
- Size: 15 to 20 mm
- Appearance: robust, golden-green in color, white transverse bands on the wings
- Habitat: meadows, forest edges, gardens
Stag beetle(Lucanus cervus)
- Size: 30 to 90 mm
- Appearance: black-brown, males with strongly pronounced mandibles (antlers)
- Habitat: Forests (preferably oak forests)
- Special feature: largest flying beetle in Germany
Cockchafer(Melolontha melolontha)
- Size: 25 to 32 mm
- Appearance: strong, black basic color, red-brown elytra, males with fans on antennae
- Habitat: open area, gardens, forest edges
Rhinoceros beetle(Oryctes nasicornis)
- Size: 20 to 40 mm
- Appearance: dark brown, males with horn on the head
- Habitat: Forests, forest edges, places with a lot of dead wood
Seven-point ladybug(Coccinella septempunctata)
- Size: 5 to 8 mm
- Appearance: round, black head, red wing with 3 points each, 1 further point on the neck
- Habitat: open landscapes, gardens, parks, forests, near prey such as aphids
Wood dung beetle(Anoplotrupes stercorosus)
- Size: 15 to 20 mm
- Appearance: black-blue basic color, roundish
- Habitat: forests
Note: The Asian ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) established itself in Germany around the turn of the millennium. It is therefore an invasive, flying beetle species.
8 pests and pests
Bed bug(Cimex lectularius)
- Size: 4 to 9 mm
- Appearance: oval, flat, dark red, strong legs
- Habitat: in human dwellings, stables, less often caves with groups of bats
German cockroach(Blattella germanica)
[Lmbuga, Blattodea. Cascuda. Santiago de Compostela 1, edited by home garden, CC BY-SA 3.0]
- Size: 12 to 16 mm
- Appearance: light or dark brown, elongated, clearly recognizable wings, long antennae
- Habitat: in human dwellings, restaurants and hotels
Oak processionary moth(Thaumetopoea processionea)
- Wingspan: 24 to 32 mm
- Appearance: gray-brown, stocky, inconspicuous, caterpillars with stinging hairs, also dark
- Habitat: oak forests, individual oaks (e.g. in fermentation)
Escaped(Pulex irritans)
- Size: 3mm
- Appearance: yellow-brown, strong ankle bones
- Habitat: in human dwellings
Furrowed vine weevil(Otiorhynchus sulcatus)
- Size: up to 10 mm
- Appearance: black, spotted dark brown, clearly recognizable proboscis
- Habitat: woods, bushes
Common mosquito(Culex pipiens)
- Size: up to 7 mm
- Appearance: slender, long legs, dark brown, with white bands, proboscis recognizable
- Habitat: near water, settlement areas
Gray meat fly(Sarcophaga carnaria)
- Size: 8 to 20 mm
- Appearance: light gray, thorax striped, abdomen with a checkerboard pattern
- Habitat: forest edges, settlement areas, light-loving
Big housefly(Musca domestica)
- Size: 8mm
- Appearance: gray to black, red eyes, covered with numerous bristles
- Habitat: not picky, mostly in human dwellings
Note: Ticks and other mites (Acari) are also pests, but they are not insects. The parasites belong to the group of arachnids (arachnida), which form their own class of animals.
5 butterflies presented
admiral(Vanessa atalanta)
- Wingspan: 50 to 60 mm
- Appearance: dark brown, red band, with white bars and spots
- Habitat: open landscapes, forest edges, clearings, settlement areas
Little fox(Aglais urticae)
- Wingspan: 40 to 50 mm
- Appearance: orange, dark edges and spots, white spot on the wing tip
- Habitat: meadows, forest edges, clearings, parks, gardens
dovetail(Papilio machaon)
- Wingspan: 50 to 80 mm
- Appearance: light basic color, patterned black and blue, with tails on wing tips
- Habitat: dry meadows, gardens, additional grassland
Peacock butterfly(Aglais io)
- Wingspan: 50 to 60 mm
- Appearance: rust-red, 4 eye spots in yellow, blue and black
- Habitat: open landscapes to forests, adaptable
Pigeon tail(Macroglossum stellatarum)
- Wingspan: 36 to 76 mm
- Appearance: reminiscent of a hummingbird, forewings brown and with dark lines, forewings yellow to red, long proboscis
- Habitat: meadows, forests, city parks, gardens
6 local Schnabelkerfen
Blood fodder(Cercopis vulnerata)
- Size: 9 to 11 mm
- Appearance: elongated, black basic color, wings patterned red
- Habitat: meadows, pastures, ditches, light forest areas
Common fire bug(Pyrrhocoris apterus)
- Size: 8 to 20 mm
- Appearance: elongated, black basic color, red warning pattern
- Habitat: Forests, gardens, settlement areas, near food plants
Common water strider(Gerris lacustris)
[© Hans Hillewaert, Gerris lacustris, edited by home garden, CC BY-SA 4.0]
- Size: 10mm
- Appearance: elongated, long legs, dark brown to black
- Habitat: small to medium standing waters, garden ponds
Green stink bug(Palomena prasina)
- Size: 12 to 14 mm
- Appearance: oval, green, dark brown to black wings
- Habitat: forests, herb layer
Rhododendron cicada(Graphocephala fennahi)
- Size: 8 to 10 mm
- Appearance: light green, flat head, orange to red wing stripes
- Habitat: on food plants such as rhododendrons
Strip bug(Graphosoma italicum)
- Size: 8 to 13 mm
- Appearance: oval, black basic color, red striped
- Habitat: meadows, roadsides, gardens
6 other insect species
Brown-black ross ant(Camponotus ligniperda)
[Richard Bartz, Munich Macro freak, Camponotus sideview 2, edited by home garden, CC BY-SA 2.5]
- Size: 6 to 16 mm
- Appearance: shiny, black-brown, slim
- Habitat: mixed forests, dry grassland, gardens, open cultivated landscapes
European praying mantis(Mantis religiosa)
- Size: 60 to 75 mm
- Appearance: green to brown, long antennae, strong fangs
- Habitat: dry meadows, wine-growing areas, preferably sunny locations
Field cricket(Gryllus campestris)
[Syrio, Gryllus campestris missing a leg 03, edited by home garden, CC BY-SA 4.0]
- Size: 18 to 27 mm
- Appearance: stocky, shiny black, long antennae
- Habitat: dry meadows, slopes, heaths, gravel pits, light coniferous forests
Common catchy tune(Forficula auricularia)
- Size: 10 to 16 mm
- Appearance: red-brown, short wings, long antennae, pincers on the rump
- Habitat: piles of leaves, trees, settlement areas
Green hay horse(Tettigonia viridissima)
- Size: 30 to 40 mm, females with up to 30 mm laying stinger
- Appearance: green, back with a light brown pattern, long antennae, spring legs and wings
- Habitat: forest edges, dry grassland, parks, fallow land, less often gardens
Black garden ant(Lasius niger)
- Size: 3 to 6 mm
- Appearance: dark brown, red-brown legs and antennae, strong abdomen, dull
- Habitat: meadows, forest edges, settlement areas
