photo of stinkbugStink bugs: Several species of stink bugs are capable of attacking cotton. These include the southern green stink bug, green stink bug, and the brown stink bug. Note that the nymph of the brown stink bug looks much different than the adult. The nymph of the green stink bug also differs greatly from the adult stage. Stink bugs cause damage by feeding on developing bolls often causing small, dark sunken lesions on the surface, similar to the boll injury caused by tarnished plant bugs.