Homoptera

Definition

A historically recognized but now obsolete suborder of Hemiptera (true bugs), formerly grouping insects with uniformly membranous or uniformly textured forewings. Molecular phylogenetics revealed Homoptera to be paraphyletic, leading to its dissolution into three distinct suborders: Auchenorrhyncha (cicadas, leafhoppers, froghoppers), Sternorrhyncha (aphids, scale insects, whiteflies), and Coleorrhyncha (moss bugs). The term persists informally among field biologists as a convenient label for plant-feeding Hemiptera with piercing-sucking mouthparts, though it carries no formal taxonomic rank.

Etymology

From Greek homos (same, uniform) + pteron (wing), referring to the uniform wing structure that originally defined the group.

Example

Aphids, cicadas, and leafhoppers were once classified together in Homoptera, but are now placed in separate suborders based on genetic evidence showing that Sternorrhyncha (aphids) and Auchenorrhyncha (cicadas, leafhoppers) are not each other's closest relatives.

Related Terms

• Hemiptera
• Heteroptera
• Auchenorrhyncha
• Sternorrhyncha
• Coleorrhyncha
• Paraphyletic
• true bugs

Usage Notes

Specialists avoid using Homoptera in formal taxonomic contexts; prefer specifying Auchenorrhyncha, Sternorrhyncha, or Coleorrhyncha. The term remains useful in agricultural and ecological literature as shorthand for 'sap-feeding bugs' when precise phylogenetic placement is not required. Contrast with Heteroptera, the suborder containing predatory and other true bugs with partially hardened forewings (hemelytra).