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Aphids and whiteflies
Bugs, cicadas, leaf hoppers
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cuckoo spit, spittle bug spit

cuckoo spit, spittle bug - leafhoppers - cicadas

Cuckoo spit, spittlebug

Cuckoo-spit is formed by the young of Cercopis sp., Philaenus spumarius and others in the Aphrophoridae family, the insect is also known as the spittlebug.

Philaenus spumarius is around 5 - 6 mm long when fully grown, and varied in colour from yellow right through to black. The nymphs are yellow or light green. The nymphs are common from May - June, and the adults from June - October.

Cuckoo spit, spittlebug lifecycle

The female lays eggs in the crevices of dead plant stems in October or November (see the photograph on the left). The eggs hatch in the spring. The nymph climbs the stem of a plant and starts to suck sap. It secretes fluid from its rear end and turns this into foam by blowing air out of its hind spiracles (paired air holes running down the sides of the insect's body). The foam protects the young insect and stops it from drying out. The adult appears from June - November. They are brown, 5 - 7 mm long, and common on hawthorn, sorrel and other plants.

 

 

Leafhoppers

Delphicidae family. 70 British species. On the right is Stenocranus minutus, a brown leafhopper.

Stenocranus minutus adult, a brown leafhopper

Cicadidae family

There are around 1500 species of cicada world wide, but only one species in Britain. Below right is a cicada nymph, and on the right is the adult. Below shows the adult emerging from the final nymphal stage.

Cicadas are easily recognised by their large size, most adults being at least 15 mm long. Young cicadas live in the soil for many years sucking the sap from plant roots. So the nymphs have very powerful forelegs to allow them to dig through the soil, see the drawing below. The adults have two pairs of membranous wings which are held roof-wise over the body. The front pair being much larger than the rear pair.

Cicada adult

Cicada emerging from final nymphal stage

cicada nymph
above a cicada nymph, note the front legs adapted for digging

Adult males can make a very loud noise when they vibrate membranes in a pair of organs, called tymbals, on their lower abdomen. They do this to attract a mate. This is called stridulation. the noise can be heard up to 1 km away.

After mating the female lays her eggs in twigs. The eggs hatch and the nymphs drop to the ground and dig into the soil. This is where they will spend most of their life sucking sap from roots. The length of time spent as a nymph depends on the species, but it is usually a prime number, e.g. 7, 13, 17. In North America the 17 year cicada is Magicicada septendecim, and the 13 year is Magicicada cassisii or cassini.

On the left is a photograph sent to me by a visitor to the site. It shows an adult cicada emerging from the exoskeleton of its final nymph stage. At the end of the final nymph stage it digs out of the soil to reach the surface. When the adult emerges the wings and outer surfaces are soft and crumpled. Blood pumped through the wings veins will expand the wings to their full extent, and the air will dry and harden the adult exoskeleton. As it dries the final colouration of the insect will emerge.

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