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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies (Hemiptera) » True Hoppers (Auchenorrhyncha) » Planthoppers (Fulgoromorpha) » Fulgoroidea » Dictyopharid Planthoppers (Dictyopharidae) » Dictyopharinae » Phylloscelini » Phylloscelis » Black Leaf-Leg (Phylloscelis atra)

Species Phylloscelis atra - Black Leaf-Leg

Classification · Explanation of Names · Size · Identification · Range · Food · Remarks · See Also · Works Cited

Black Leaf-Leg planthopper - Phylloscelis atra

Dictyopharidae, nice eyes - Phylloscelis atra

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

Order Hemiptera (True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies)

Suborder Auchenorrhyncha (True Hoppers)

Infraorder Fulgoromorpha (Planthoppers)

Superfamily Fulgoroidea

Family Dictyopharidae (Dictyopharid Planthoppers)

Subfamily Dictyopharinae

Tribe Phylloscelini

Genus Phylloscelis

Species atra (Black Leaf-Leg)

Explanation of Names

Phylloscelis atra Germar 1839

atra (L). 'black'

Size

♀ 3.7±0.13 mm, ♀ 4.8±0.07(1)

Identification

species comes in several very different color patterns (Andy Hamilton, 2.i.2013)

Range

e. US to CO (MA-CO south to FL-TX) & so. ON; Mexico(2)(3)(4)

Food

Known host: winged sumac (Rhus copallinum, Anacardiaceae)(2)

Remarks

a red/orange-striped variety 'albovenosa' is a mimic of a number of similarly colored distasteful beetles in the genus Cryptocephalus; this color variety, less common than atra, occurs along with it

See Also

P. pallescens is brown, with lots of veins forming prominent ridges on the wings (Dr Hamilton)

Works Cited

1.	The planthopper genus Phylloscelis in the United States (Homoptera: Dictyopharidae) McPherson, K.R. and S.W. Wilson. 1995. Insecta Mundi 9(3-4): 177-188. .

2.	Bartlett C.R. and contributors (2017-) Planthoppers of North America

3.	CU Museum of Natural History entomology databases & research tools

4.	Insects of Ojibway Prairie, a southern Ontario tallgrass prairie Paiero S.M., Marshall S.A., Pratt P.D., Buck M. 2010. Shorthouse J.D., Floate K.D. (Eds.) Arthropods of Canadian Grasslands, Vol. 1: 199-225.

Contributed by Robin McLeod on 1 September, 2005 - 5:03pm
Additional contributions by Mike Quinn, v belov
Last updated 31 January, 2019 - 6:54pm

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