Species Draeculacephala noveboracensis - Black-ledged Sharpshooter

Draeculacephala prasina (Walker, 1851)

Draeculacephala noveboracensis (Fitch, 1851)

This species is green to yellow-green with blue wing venation and a blunter head than most members of the genus. This species is very similar to D. angulifera and D. crassicornis, but has subtle features that usually allow differentiation with clear photos. There is a dark spot in front of each antennal segment on the head and two very close dark spots on the vertex. These markings are much bolder on noveboracensis than they are on similar species (while males of angulifera can present bold markings, there is a distinctive crossbow-shaped mark on the crown not present in other species). Importantly, there is a dark spot on the face directly below the vertex (preocular macula), which is distinctive.

northeastern U.S. and Canada, travelling south through the Appalachians. can be found farther west in Canada.

grasses

"Hamilton (1985) reinstated D. prasina from junior synonymy under noveboracensis, stating that the two taxa differ slightly in the shape of the male 2S apodemes. This distinction, which is apparently correlated with latitude and body size, seems arbitrary. I was unable to find consistent differences in the shape of the 2S apodemes of males dissected for the present study, nor could I find additional diagnostic characters for these taxa. I therefore regard them as synonyms."

- Dietrich, 1994

Draeculacephala angulifera — a similar species that overlaps in range, but differs morphologically enough that identification is usually straightforward.

Draeculacephala crassicornis — a similar species that overlaps in range on rare occasion (in CO, and potentially in various regions of Canada). For differentiating females, good shots of the side, face, and antennae of the hopper are necessary.

Helochara communis — a common species in the Eastern U.S. and Canada which is occasionally mistaken for D. noveboracensis to the untrained eye. This is likely because of the blunter head, but there are no black spots and the wing venation is green.