Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
=merioptera auct. nec Scopoli 1763
Explanation of Names
Heterotoma planicornis (Pallas 1772)
Identification
Adult: black with green femora and very unusual antennae extending forward from head; pronotum and hemelytra black, sparsely covered with mixture of dark and pale hairs; tibiae yellowish-brown
Range
native to Europe, adventive in our area and established in the east (NS-NC) and in the west (BC-CA-UT)
(2)(3)Habitat
on weeds such as nettle (
Urtica) and
deadnettle (
Lamium spp.) plus various shrubs and trees
Season
adults Jun-Oct, nymphs May-Jun
Food
adults and nymphs prey on aphids and other small insects; also feed on buds and unripe fruit of various plants
Life Cycle
overwinters as an egg; one generation per year
Remarks
may have been inadvertently introduced along with alien plants -- like it was accidentally introduced to New Zealand with
Scotch Broom (
Cytisus scoparius)
(4)
earliest NA record: NY 1915
(5)