Macropsis

Lewis, 1834

Macropsis is a of () established by R.H. Lewis in 1834. are associated with diverse plants including willows, poplars, plums, and blackberries. Some species have been documented as of phytoplasma affecting cultivated . The genus has been subject to extensive taxonomic revision due to historical misidentifications and superficial resemblances between species.

Macropsis viridis by (c) jimeckert49, some rights reserved (CC BY). Used under a CC-BY license.

Macropsis ocellata by (c) Quinten Wiegersma, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Quinten Wiegersma. Used under a CC-BY license.

Macropsis basalis by (c) Henrique Pacheco, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Henrique Pacheco. Used under a CC-BY license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Macropsis: /məˈkrɒpsɪs/

These audio files are automatically generated. While they are not always 100% accurate, they are a good starting point.

Identification

Identification relies heavily on male , abdominal , and 2nd of the female . Korean required revision due to erroneous records based on superficial similarity to European species. Male vibrational calling signals have been documented as diagnostic characters for some Central Asian species.

Images

Distribution

Documented from Korea, Southeastern Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, British Columbia, Portugal, and New Jersey. Korean fauna comprises 7 recognized . Southeastern Kazakhstan supports at least 20 species. Central Asian species concentrated in Tien Shan Mountains and Ferghana Valley.

Host Associations

Prunus spp. - Plum-feeding documented
Rubus spp. - M. scotti on blackberry; M. fuscula associated with loganberry
Populus spp. - M. virescens var. gramina associated with poplar
Salix spp. - Multiple willow-dwelling in Central Asia
Berberis spp. - Specialized documented

Behavior

Males produce vibrational calling signals used in identification. M. fuscula can persist on wild and re-infest cultivated plants after local extinction events.

Ecological Role

Some act as for phytoplasma , including Rubus stunt disease transmitted by M. scotti.

Human Relevance

M. fuscula has caused significant on cultivated loganberry in British Columbia. M. scotti implicated in Rubus stunt affecting blackberry production in Portugal. Vectoring potential appears -specific; M. scotti unlikely to transmit disease to raspberry due to monophagy on blackberry.

More Details

Taxonomic Complexity

The has experienced substantial taxonomic revision. M. notata was misidentified as M. prasina in Korea. European M. scutellata and M. illota were removed from Korean fauna after examination revealed only superficial resemblance. Synonymy established: M. iliensis = M. tuvensis; M. vicina includes synonyms M. populicola, M. albinata, and M. albidula.

Research Limitations

Most available literature on taxonomic description and identification. Biological and ecological data remain sparse for the majority of species. records exist for some species but are not comprehensive across the .