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Photo#783519
Tiny bug sucking the sap from our mulberry tree - Homalodisca vitripennis

Tiny bug sucking the sap from our mulberry tree - Homalodisca vitripennis
San Diego, San Diego County, California, USA
May 18, 2013
Size: Between 1/8 and 1/4 inch
This little guy (and many of his brothers/sisters) is currently sitting in our Pakistani Mulberry tree and appears to be feeding on its sap. The creature produces little drops every 3 or 4 seconds, and when looking against the sun you can actually see a rain of such drops falling down all over from the tree. We're not sure whether the drops are the insect's excrement or whether they leak from the tree where the animal appears to be sucking.
The insect is very shy and has a tendency to move onto the other side of the branch when being photographed. He appears to have reddish/yellowish "eyes" on the sides of its body (they look like compound eyes, but could be other organs; I was unable to get a shot where the insect was facing me). The creature seems to have grasshopper-like hind legs, but it's difficult to tell.

Any idea what kind of creature this is? Do we need to worry about our mulberry tree?

Moved

Moved for expert attention
Moved from ID Request.

It's the nymph (immature form) of a leafhopper. Our hopper expert, Dr. Hamilton, should be able to take the ID further.

Welcome to BugGuide!

 
Thanks for the initial ID!
Thanks for the initial ID, Ken!
Could it be a Glassy-winged Sharpshooter? I saw some pictures that were somewhat similar to the specimen from my backyard.

Thanks,

Mirko

 
I suspect you're right.

 
Homalodisca vitripennis
yes; the droplets are indeed exudate expelled from the anus

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