Hoppers of North Carolina

Hoppers of North Carolina:
Spittlebugs, Leafhoppers, Treehoppers, and Planthoppers

Family (Alpha):

ISSIDAE Members:	NC Records
Thionia quinquata - No Common Name

Taxonomy

Family: ISSIDAE

Subfamily: Issinae

Identification

Online Photographs: BugGuide, GBIF iNaturalist
Description: A uniformly brown species, with small fine black points all over the body. The prominent wing venation and the claws are also black. The vertex of the head is narrow, with the lateral margins diverging; this gives the vertex, which is relatively flat on the top without any pronounced margins, more of a chevron-like shape than other species in the genus (BG). This subtle but important field mark can be useful in differentiating from the similar T. bullata. Adults, at least females, are large for this genus, being 8 mm long from tip of the head to apex of the wings (T. quinquata). See here for images of an adult female: lateral, dorsal, and frontal. Nymphs are greenish with orange transverse stripes down the back and an orange margin to the head. The head length itself is distinctive, as the head noticeably extends past the eyes, converging to form a triangle when viewed from above.

Distribution in North Carolina

County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.

Distribution: Southeastern United States, with specimens from North Carolina, Alabama, and Georgia; rare.

Abundance: Uncommon to rare, or rarely collected, across the state, primarily in the Piedmont.

Seasonal Occurrence

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec

Habitats and Life History

Habitats: Mixed hardwood forest and pine forest.

Plant Associates: Pines, though has also been recorded from oak and sweetgum (probably was resting on these trees).

Behavior:

Comment: Further studies need to be done to clearly associate nymphs with adults; rearing some of these long-nosed nymphs would be extremely helpful. Adults are very rarely encountered in this species.

Status: Native

Global and State Rank:

Species Photo Gallery for Thionia quinquata No Common Name
	Photo by: Margarita Lankford Orange Co. Comment: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/119471793	Photo by: Scott Bolick Guilford Co. Comment:
	Photo by: Scott Bolick Guilford Co. Comment: ID supported by C. Bartlett	Photo by: Ken Kneidel Mecklenburg Co. Comment: captured during sweep of low vegetation bordering athletic field
	Photo by: Ken Kneidel Mecklenburg Co. Comment: captured during sweep of low vegetation bordering athletic field	Photo by: Ken Kneidel Mecklenburg Co. Comment: captured during sweep of low vegetation bordering athletic field
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn Moore Co. Comment: sandhills (pine forest) habitat with lots of shrubby vegetation; notice how far the nose juts out (compared to T. simplex)	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Paul Scharf Gates Co. Comment: grassy, brushy habitat and mixed hardwood, cypress forest; nymphs
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Paul Scharf Gates Co. Comment: grassy, brushy habitat and mixed hardwood, cypress forest; nymphs	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn Moore Co. Comment: sandhills (pine forest) habitat with lots of shrubby vegetation; notice how far the nose juts out (compared to T. simplex)
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn Moore Co. Comment: sandhills (pine forest) habitat with lots of shrubby vegetation; notice how far the nose juts out (compared to T. simplex)	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn Vance Co. Comment: mixed hardwood forest edge near grassy areas
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn Vance Co. Comment: mixed hardwood forest edge near grassy areas	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn Vance Co. Comment: mixed hardwood forest edge near grassy areas

Thionia quinquata - No Common Name

Species Photo Gallery for Thionia quinquata No Common Name