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The spined soldier bug (Podisus maculiventris) is a species of stink bug common in North America. They are predators of gypsy moth caterpillars and the larvae of beetles such as the Colorado potato beetle and the Mexican bean beetle. Since the Mexican bean beetle is widely regarded as a notorious agricultural pest in North America, soldier bugs are generally considered to be beneficial garden insects.

They have prominent spines on each "shoulder" as well as on their legs. The life cycle of these predator stink bugs starts when they are eggs. Females lay between 17 and 70 eggs at a time. The eggs hatch in a week or less into “instars,” the term used for this bug’s five immature stages. At this first stage, the instars are red and eat nothing at all. The color pattern changes as they mature. They do eat other insects in the other four instar stages. It takes about a month for a newly hatched instar to develop into a mature adult. Adults overwinter in leaf litter to emerge again in early spring. Females lay some 500 eggs, beginning a week after they emerge.