Striated Leafhopper

Appearance

They are small insects that measure between 7 and 9 mm, and feed on the sap of plants. Leafhoppers are difficult to identify, but the lines and patterns that decorate them can sometimes help us identify the genus.
The striped leafhopper is black in color, with yellow and red dots and lines decorating it. It is shaped like a torpedo, with a triangular shaped head almost as wide as the body. The eyes are located on either side of its head, with tiny thread-like antennae located a bit in front of them.

The six legs have the shins dotted with small thorns. The rounded-tipped wings are aligned with the body at a small angle that forms a small roof when at rest.

Naming

Cuerna striata (Walker, 1851)

Synonyms:
Tettigonia striata Walker, 1851
Tettigonia lugens Walker, 1851
Tettigonia septentrionalis Walker, 1858
Cuerna pseudoalba Hamilton, 1970
Cuerna cuesta Hamilton, 1970
Cuerna nielsoni Hamilton, 1970
Cuerna inflata Hamilton, 1970
Cuerna reducta Hamilton, 1970

Distribution

AN: AB, BC, MB, NS, NT, ON, QC, SK
USA: AK, AZ, CO, ID, IL, KS, MA, ME, MI, MN, MT, ND, NE, NH, NM, NV, NY, SD, TX, UT, VT, WA, WI, WY

Reproduction

The female will lay her eggs under the leaves of a plant. Hemiptera go through the transformations of incomplete metamorphosis before becoming an adult insect. The egg gives rise to a larva, which gradually changes into the adult insect which can fly and reproduce. It is in its adult form that it will overwinter.

Food

They are herbivorous insects which, in large numbers, can become harmful to the plant, and can allow diseases to attack the plants they have damaged.

Predators

Its predators are amphibians, birds, lizards, praying mantises. Larvae and nymphs fall prey to carnivorous insects such as ladybugs, ants, jumping spiders.