Three New Leafhopper Species Identified

A recent review of leafhoppers from various museum collections across the world led to the identification of three novel species of leafhoppers belonging to genus Futasujinus.

One of the leafhoppers has been named Futasujinus dietrichi after the University of Illinois entomologist Dr. Chris Deitrich, for his good work on leafhoppers. The leafhopper species from China were identified during the review of museum collections in China, the UK and Illinois.

The other two new species have been named Futasujinus truncates and Futasujinus hastatus. Both the species epithets allude to processes on their aedeagal shafts.

According to the reports, the three novel species measure 3.5 millimeters long and are characterized by the yellow or brown pair of brown longitudinal bands that extend to the scutellum.

Leafhopper is the common name applied to the species belonging to the family cicadellidae. They are one of the largest families of plant-feeding insects and are spread all over the world. These minute insects, known as hoppers, feed on various fruits, vegetables, flowers and woody ornamental hosts. They are the common insects of lawn. An adult leafhopper can fly and quickly hop off a plant on being disturbed. They are active insects.

Most of the leafhopper species are important agricultural pests. It is very difficult to control leafhoppers due to their mobility. When leafhoppers feed on leaves, they appear to be pale, brown and may curl and die. A few of the leafhopper species are known to transmit plant disease and this is troublesome, mainly among herbaceous crop plants.

The new species are described in an article in Annals of the Entomological Society of America.