HomeGuideID RequestRecentFrassForumsDonateHelp

Giving Tuesday

Do you use BugGuide? Please consider a monetary gift on this Giving Tuesday.

Donate Now

Your donation to BugGuide is tax-deductible.

Clickable Guide

Calendar

Upcoming Events

See Moth submissions from National Moth Week 2023

Photos of insects and people from the 2022 BugGuide gathering in New Mexico, July 20-24

Photos of insects and people from the Spring 2021 gathering in Louisiana, April 28-May 2

Photos of insects and people from the 2019 gathering in Louisiana, July 25-27

Photos of insects and people from the 2018 gathering in Virginia, July 27-29

Photos of insects and people from the 2015 gathering in Wisconsin, July 10-12

Previous events

TaxonomyBrowse

Info

ImagesLinksBooksData

Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies (Hemiptera) » True Bugs (Heteroptera) » Pentatomomorpha » Leatherbugs (Coreoidea) » Scentless Plant Bugs (Rhopalidae) » Rhopalinae » Niesthreini » Niesthrea » Niesthrea louisianica

Species Niesthrea louisianica

Classification · Explanation of Names · Size · Identification · Range · Food · Life Cycle · Remarks · Works Cited

Niesthrea louisianica - Niesthrea louisianica - male - female

Scentless Plant Bug - Niesthrea louisianica - male

Tiny bugs on my hibiscus - Niesthrea louisianica

Scentless plant bug – Niesthrea louisianica? - Niesthrea louisianica

Classification

Kingdom Animalia (Animals)

Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)

Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)

Class Insecta (Insects)

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

Suborder Heteroptera (True Bugs)

Infraorder Pentatomomorpha

Superfamily Coreoidea (Leatherbugs)

Family Rhopalidae (Scentless Plant Bugs)

Subfamily Rhopalinae

Tribe Niesthreini

Genus Niesthrea

Species louisianica (Niesthrea louisianica)

Explanation of Names

Niesthrea louisianica Sailer 1961

Size

6.7‒8.2 mm(1)

Identification

varies in color; thickly sprinkled with dark spots

Nymphs

Adults

Range

NY‒IA to FL‒CA to Costa Rica; Jamaica(1)

Food

hosts include Hibiscus and other Malvaceae(2); feeds on flower buds and seeds

Life Cycle

Eggs are laid in masses on the undersides of leaves.

Remarks

biocontrol agent of velvetleaf (Abutilon theophrasti)(3)

Works Cited

1.	Revision of the New World Scentless Plant Bug genus Niesthrea (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Rhopalidae), with descriptions of ... María Cecilia Melo, Thomas J.Henry. 2019. Insect Systematics and Diversity 3(5): 9; 1–36.

2.	How to Know the True Bugs Slater, James A., and Baranowski, Richard M. 1978. Wm. C. Brown Company.

3.	Steill J., Meyer J. (2003) The Rhopalidae of Florida

Contributed by Hannah Nendick-Mason on 19 May, 2006 - 7:23am
Additional contributions by cotinis, Beatriz Moisset, Mike Quinn, ceiseman, v belov
Last updated 13 September, 2023 - 8:17pm

Disclaimer: Dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service. We strive to provide accurate information, but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world. If you need expert professional advice, contact your local extension office.

Contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content.
Click the contributor's name for licensing and usage information.
Everything else copyright © 2003-2023 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by:

Printer Friendly Version