Hoppers of North Carolina

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

Family (Alpha):

MEMBRACIDAE Members:	NC Records
Ophiderma grisea - No Common Name

Taxonomy

Family: MEMBRACIDAE

Subfamily: Smiliinae

Tribe: Smiliini

Synonym: Ophiderma griseum

Taxonomic Author: Woodruff, 1919

Identification

Online Photographs: BugGuide, GBIF iNaturalist Google
Description: The female is slender, with a long grayish pronotum. The face is a dull white to yellowish color, and there are black dots on the vertex above the red ocelli. Pale bands cross the pronotum, and the forewings are part white, part clear; the tip is black. The body beneath is pale, and the legs are pale with a black base. Males are slender, with hairy pubescence on the face and pronotum. The pronotum is similar to that of the female, but darker and shorter; it varies in color from brown to black, with creamy to white bands. The face is creamy to white, and the wings resemble those of the female but with a black band crossing in the middle. The body beneath is black, and the abdominal segments are edged posteriorly with pale color. The legs are pale, with black bases. Adult males are 5.5 to 6.0 mm long, while females are 6.0-6.2 mm. (Kopp, 1973)

Distribution in North Carolina

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

Out of State Record(s)

Distribution: Eastern and central North America

Abundance: Seasonal distribution: 18 June-9 August (CTNC)

Seasonal Occurrence

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

Habitats and Life History

Habitats:

Plant Associates: Quercus sp.

Behavior: To listen to the male courtship call for this genus, listen here. These courtship calls are not audible to the human ear, and the calls here are produced by recording the substrate vibrations that the treehoppers use to communicate through the plants themselves. The recorded call is then amplified so that it is now audible to human ears. Research has shown that treehoppers use vibrations to attract mates, to announce the discovery of a good feeding site, or to alert a defending mother to the approach of a predator (T.IM).

Comment:

Status: Native

Global and State Rank:

Species Photo Gallery for Ophiderma grisea No Common Name 13
	Photo by: Mark Shields Onslow Co. Comment:	Photo by: Matthew S. Wallace Out Of State Co. Comment: male
	Photo by: Matthew S. Wallace Out Of State Co. Comment: female	Photo by: Scott Bolick Alleghany Co. Comment:
	Photo by: Scott Bolick Alleghany Co. Comment:	Photo by: Scott Bolick Alleghany Co. Comment:
	Photo by: Scott Bolick Alleghany Co. Comment:	Photo by: Scott Bolick Alleghany Co. Comment:
	Photo by: Scott Bolick Alleghany Co. Comment:	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger Out Of State Co. Comment: 6.2 mm long, female
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger Out Of State Co. Comment: 6.2 mm long, female	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger Out Of State Co. Comment: 6.2 mm long, female
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger Out Of State Co. Comment: 6.2 mm long, female

Ophiderma grisea - No Common Name

Species Photo Gallery for Ophiderma grisea No Common Name 13