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Photo#864493
Psyllidae on Lead plant, dorsal - Amorphicola pallida

Psyllidae on Lead plant, dorsal - Amorphicola pallida
Weaver Dunes, Wabasha County, Minnesota, USA
June 23, 2013
Collected June 22, 2013 on Lead plant, Amorpha canescens
Their color is a good match to the color of Lead Plant leaves.

Batch

Images of this individual: tag all
Psyllidae on Lead plant, dorsal - Amorphicola pallida Psyllidae on Lead plant, lateral - Amorphicola pallida Psyllidae on Lead plant, ventral - Amorphicola pallida Psyllidae on Lead plant, dorsal - Amorphicola pallida Psyllidae on Lead plant, ventral - Amorphicola pallida Psyllidae on Lead plant - Amorphicola pallida Psyllidae on Lead plant - Amorphicola pallida Psyllidae on Lead plant, nymph exuvia - Amorphicola pallida Psyllidae on Lead plant, dorsal - Amorphicola pallida Psyllidae on Lead plant, ventral - Amorphicola pallida

Moved
Moved from Psylloidea.

Amorphicola pallida
Great series! Two similar Amorpha-feeding species occur in our area: A. pallida and A. amorphae. Both are covered by Tuthill (pdf). To summarize, both are very similar, with differences arising in the genal processes, antennae length, genitalia, and the presence or absense of a basal spur on the hind tibia. The last character is obviously not visible here, but your photo series shows the other characters perfectly. The female genitalia. as shown in this photo

are especially useful, and can be easily compared to Tuthill's figures; perhaps more easily observed is the antennae length, which are about 1.3x as long as the width of the head in A. pallida and only as long as the head width in A. amorphae.

Which brings us to this psyllid:

I need to ask, are the antennae on that one really as short as they look? I know that sometimes upward-pointing antennae can appear shorter than they are, but if it's not an optical illusion than I think that species is actually A. amorphae. The appearance of the genal processes in dorsal view seem to also suggest that species, and if so, then you've managed to not only add two new species to BugGuide but obtain a monopoly on photos of North American Amorphicola.

 
I finally read
Tuthill (as per your posted PDF, thank you) and it looks as if neither A. pallida or A. amorphae have a spur on the hind tibia. He also says their host plants are different; A. pallida is Amorpha canescens and A. amorphae is Amorpha fruiticosa. Is that still valid? I ask because I have a few collected on A. canescens and they are in poor condition.
Thank you.

 
Good catch
I'm not sure what lead me to believe that there was a difference in the character of the hind tibia spur, but you are correct - thank you for catching that. As for the host, I believe the distinction still stands as I've not seen any records that conflict; specimens from Amorpha canescens are likely A. pallida.

 
Whoa, you're fast!
I'll now be looking for patches of Amorpha fruiticosa!
Thank you.

 
Two questions:
1. Does the comparison of antennae length/width of head hold for nymphs?
2. Where to measure the head: at eyes, including eyes?
Thanks. I have a batch of dead and dried but the antennae of the adults are broken off. The antennae of what is left of the the parasitized nymphs are intact. (Rats, no way for me to tell which wasps may have been associated with the nymphs.)

 
I don't know for sure if the
I don't know for sure if the antenna length character holds for nymphs; descriptions of nymphs are not published for most species and I would need to see a large series of (preferably fifth instar) nymphs positively tied to adults of both species to be able to see for sure. For measuring the head, the eyes are included.

In the absence of the antennae, lateral shots of both the male and female genital segments should be able to distinguish the two species.

I'll check the literature and get back to you to see if there has been anything published in regards to known parasitoids of this genus.

 
Chris,
THANK YOU. I just knew the blue ones had to be associated with leadplant, their color was such a perfect match. (OK, I didn't know, more like wishful thinking.)

I love the genus name, and on the second one, the (possible) species name.

As to the second one, I just posted photos and you were wise to question the length of the antennae. They are longer than they looked in the dorsal photo.

Thank you for your interest in psyllids and BugGuide.

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