Adult spined soldier bugs are medium sized (9-13 mm long) and brown in color.  They are shield shaped with a prominent spine extending outward from each “shoulder.”  Unlike plant feeding species, the tips of the wings tend to extend well past the abdomen, and there is often a dark line at the wing tips where they overlap.  These predators have a strong, stout beak relative to plant feeding stink bugs which have more slender beaks.  The beak is kept folded under the body unless feeding.  The eggs of spined soldier bugs are laid in a loose mass of 17-70 eggs.  Each egg has a characteristic crown of “spines” that rings its top.  Immature (nymphal) stages are more rounded in shape.   Small nymphs have a black head and thorax with a red abdomen.  Larger nymphs vary in color considerably as they grow; the abdomen may be tan to reddish-orange in color with red, white and/or black markings.