Hoppers of North Carolina

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

Family (Alpha):

CICADELLIDAE Members:	NC Records
Athysanus argentarius - Silver Leafhopper

Taxonomy

Family: CICADELLIDAE	Subfamily: Deltocephalinae	Tribe: Athysanini
Taxonomic Author: Metcalf, 1955

Identification

Online Photographs: BugGuide, GBIF iNaturalist Google
Description: A distinctive leafhopper, nothing else in the state looks like it. A silvery, sometimes light brown color overall with brown lateral stripes on the wings and several dark lateral stripes on the thorax. The outer edge of the wings has a bold pale border, and there is a bold, characteristic black line on the head between the eyes. Adults are 6.5-8 mm long. Nymphs have a grayish body with brown lateral stripes, a pale bold border on the side of the developing wings and abdomen, and a characteristic wide head. (BG) For more diagrams and pictures of this species, see: BG.

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: Native to Europe, introduced to North America (first NA record in MA in 1920) where it is most common in the Northeast and eastern Canada (BG).

Abundance: Only recorded from a few counties in the mountains, where it is locally common; probably more abundant in the right habitat, especially in the mountains. Likely to expand in this region.

Seasonal Occurrence

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

Habitats and Life History

Habitats: Coastal and inland grassland areas (BG)

Plant Associates: Grasses; there is some evidence that in North America it prefers introduced species of grasses, such as those found in lawns and hayfields (BG).

Behavior: Can be attracted at night with a light.

Comment: This species has been implicated in the spread of an incurable plant disease called aster yellows (BG), which can destroy the vegetation in a field and even affect nearby trees.

Status: Introduced

Global and State Rank:

select t1.*, t2.photo_link, t2.photo_id, t2.comments from county as t1 left join photo_table as t2 on t1.coid=t2.coid where t1.id='15397' and photo_link is not NULL order by t2.date_c desc

Species Photo Gallery for Athysanus argentarius Silver Leafhopper 12
	Photo by: Ted Wilcox Watauga Co. Comment: unid_leafhopper	Photo by: Ted Wilcox Watauga Co. Comment: unid_leafhopper
	Photo by: Ted Wilcox Watauga Co. Comment: unid_leafhopper	Photo by: Ted Wilcox Watauga Co. Comment: unid_leafhopper
	Photo by: Ted Wilcox Watauga Co. Comment: unid_leafhopper	Photo by: Ted Wilcox Watauga Co. Comment: unid_leafhopper
	Photo by: Ted Wilcox Watauga Co. Comment: unid_leafhopper	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Caldwell Co. Comment: found during the day, caught while sweeping
	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Caldwell Co. Comment: found during the day, caught while sweeping	Photo by: Kyle Kittelberger, Brian Bockhahn, Paul Scharf Caldwell Co. Comment: found during the day, caught while sweeping
	Photo by: Paul Scharf Out Of State Co. Comment: Attracted to Light	Photo by: Paul Scharf Out Of State Co. Comment: Attracted to Light

Athysanus argentarius - Silver Leafhopper

Species Photo Gallery for Athysanus argentarius Silver Leafhopper 12